LP 348 
.02 B7 
Copy 1 



Report 



on the 



Schools of Akron 

Made for the Educational Committee of the 
Akron Chamber of Commerce 



July, 1917 



BY 



HORACE L. BRITTAIN 

Director of the Toronto Bureau of Municipal Research 

Assisted by T. L. Hinckley, Chief of Staff 



REPORT 

on the 

SCHOOLS OF AKRON 

Made for the Educational Committee of the 
Akron Chamber of Commerce 

by 
HORACE L. PRITTAIN 

Director of the Toronto Bureau of 
Municipal Research 

Assisted by T. L. Hinckley, Chief of Staff 



JULY, 1917 






D. of D. 

FEB 9 1918 






This Book Contains : 

The Report of the Educational Committee of the 
Akron Chamber of Commerce and Its Recom- 
mendations as Unanimously Adopted by the 
Chamber's Board of Directors, August 27, 1917, 

and 

The Report of Dr. Horace L. Brittain, Director of 
the Bureau of Municipal Research, Toronto, 
Canada, Giving the Results of His Detailed Study 
of the Public School System of Akron, Ohio, and 
His Recommendations for Its Improvement and 
Enlargement. 



Educational Committee 

W. C. Geer E. D. Fritch J. E. Good 

P. W. Litchfield Francis Seiberling 



REPORT OF THE EDUCATIONAL 

COMMITTEE OF THE AKRON 

CHAMBER OF COMMERCE 

The Educational Committee of the Chamber of Commerce was 
organized in December, 1916, after its appointment by the President 
of the Chamber, Mr. Crannell Morgan. In view of the interest taken 
by a large number of the members of the community in the public 
school affairs, we agreed that the committee should make so com- 
plete a study of the school system as to make possible a community 
program of education. This study and program was undertaken 
from one fundamental point of view, namely, the welfare of the 
children of this city. Both the study and the program, we agreed, 
ought to be made from a thoroughly impersonal standpoint so far as 
the administrators of the school system were concerned ; but from a 
very human standpoint so far as the children were concerned. We 
had therefore in mind, what is best for the young people of Akron 
at the present time, and what the line of growth of the educational 
system should be, in order that each succeeding group of children 
be properly educated to fit into its life in this city. 

This conception proved to be so large an undertaking that we pre- 
vailed upon the Board of Directors of the Chamber of Commerce to 
permit us to employ expert trained assistants, for we felt that no 
program could be developed that was not based upon a complete 
study of the present organization, and also upon a study of other 
cities, and it was evident that the members of the Committee could 
not devote the amount of time to this work that would produce a 
satisfactory report. We therefore employed Dr. Horace L. Brittain 
who is now Director of the Bureau of Municipal Research, Toronto, 
Canada. Dr. Brittain is an experienced educator. He is a graduate 
in Educational Administration of Clark University, Worcester, 
Massachusetts. In 1913 and 1914 he was Director of the Ohio School 
Survey and therefore is well known to Ohio people. Dr. Brittain 
was assisted by his Toronto Chief of Staff, Mr. Thomas L. Hinckley. 
He is a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is a 
sanitary engineer, and is a skilled and experienced student of public 
schools, particularly from the standpoint of buildings and sanita- 
tion. He was formerly Director of the Milwaukee Bureau of Muni- 
cipal Research and made an exhaustive study of the school buildings 
of that city. 

The Committee believes that the education of the children is one 
of the three fundamental functions delegated by the family to the 
community. Each family in our early history performed this func- 
tion for itself, but today that is impossible. And since it has been 
delegated to the community, it certainly is a poor spirited community 
thai fails to provide adequate facilities for education. Therefore the 
investigators were instructed to spare no pains in arriving at the 
besi possible program for the children of this community. x 



The method pursued by Dr. Brittain and Mr. Hinckley is described 
in the full report which will follow. Briefly, however, they under- 
took to carry out the spirit of the Committee, to make a thorough 
and impersonal study of the public schools, obtaining the complete 
co-operation of the Board of Education and of all people connected 
with the school organization. It would have been impossible for this 
study to have been conducted without a great deal of work on the 
part of teachers, and the Committee wishes to express here to the 
Board, to the Superintendent, to the principals and to the teachers, 
its hearty appreciation of the energetic efforts and work done by 
them. Every record asked for was given, every request for observa- 
tion and examination of .records was freely arranged. Dr. Brittain 
and Mr. Hinckley came and went through the schools as they wished. 
They saw with their own eyes, and their report and recommenda- 
tions are wholly uninfluenced by anyone within or without the or- 
ganization. As a result there has been prepared by Dr. Brittain, a 
complete report involving many pages of text, and many tables with 
a number of photographs and other illustrative material. This re- 
port will shortly be placed in the hands of the printer and will be 
available for public distribution. The members of" the Committee 
have visited many schools, and have held many meetings and are 
thoroughly familiar with the report. We endorse it and unanimously 
recommend it to the members of the community. At the present 
time the Committee wishes to summarize the important features of 
this report so that the community may know immediately its more 
important findings while the full document is in press. 

From all this study we wish to call attention in summary form, to 
three fundamental topics which will be discussed in the order men- 
tioned : First, The things that are well done in the Akron Schools ; 
Second, The recommendations of the Educational Committee ; and 
Third, The course the Committee believes should be pursued in order 
that these recommendations may be adopted. 

1. The things that are well done in the Akron Schools. It would 
be impossible in this place for us to point out all the things in the 
Akron Schools which are worthy of favorable comment, but several 
are striking enough to warrant emphasis and the community should 
know of them. 

(a) Automatic Student Administration. Each child is trained to 
lead the recitations and it is an inspiring sight to see the self- 
confidence and precision with which little boys and girls as- 
sume charge of classes. This is briefly the automatic student 
administration and is an unusually splendid plan. In this 
respect the Akron Schools are in advance of most other com- 
munities. 

The study-recitation is a plan by which the teacher and 
children study together. The child is taught how to study — 
a feature woefully lacking in most schools. 

These two features of the Akron Schools are of peculiar 

educational value, and are found in such highly developed 

• form in but few systems. The children of the Akron Schools 



are trained from the beginning to think and to express them- 
selves on their feet freely. This means that they are trained 
to be independent in their thinking and speaking, and not at 
all the parrots that one finds so frequently in public schools. 
One could discuss this feature at length, for it is fundamental 
in all grades, and we believe that it gives to the boys and 
girls of this city a •training that is of unusual value. 

(b) The Teachers' Loyalty. It is clear that the teachers are loyal 
to the schools and to its officers, and that they work hard and 
for the benefit of the children. In the full report one may see 
what makes up the teacher's day, and we doubt if there is in 
this country any more hard working, enthusiastic body of 
teachers than is found in the Akron Schools. They may make 
mistakes, as everyone does, but the mistakes are not of intent 
and are not part of the system, but are rather the same type 
of individual mistakes that we all make in our own daily 
work. It speaks well for the City of Akron that it has so 
excellent a body of public school teachers. 

(c) Individual Instruction. The amount of individual instruction 
given to children who need it more than others, is high. This 
means that the teachers and principals give much personal 
care to each child so that the system may not grind out chil- 
dren as though through a machine, but rather that each indi- 
vidual child may have as great a degree of attention as his 
particular individuality may demand. The chief handicaps — 
and they are great — are due to the rapid growth of the city, 
and because of that to the difficulty on the part of the teacher 
in becoming acquainted with new children. It is obvious that 
when a child goes through the entire school system in a com- 
munity, the amount of personal attention he may receive will 
be greater and will do him more good than when he drops 
into the school system with habits formed in another city. 

(d) Educational Records. The report has considerable to say re- 
garding school records, but the educational records of the city 
are very good ; and in particular it is worth noting that a 
record is kept of each child from his entrance into the schools, 
continuously through them, and from these records each suc- 
ceeding teacher may learn of the characteristics of each child 
in a way so that the teacher may build upon the work of each 
previous teacher. These records are kept permanently, and 
it would be a splendid thing if assistance enough were pro- 
vided to permit a follow-up of children far enough into their 
subsequent life to assist them in making the most of it. The 
educational systems of this country — school and college — are 
as a rub' weak in this important phase of educational affairs, 
and there are too many children who fail to make the most out 
of their after life on account of the fact that the school or 
college to which they intrust their education does not keep in 
touch with them in their after life. 

6 



2. The Recommendations of the Educational Committee. The 

recommendations of the Educational Committee are largely in the 
nature of additions needed to bring the school system into a condi- 
tion that will permit each child to make the most of its life in 
Akron. Times have changed. Akron has grown, and our school 
system is lacking primarily in the fact that it has not added to its 
activities those features necessary to readjust the schools to the 
changed community. 

(a) Reorganization of the Board of Education. It is felt that the 
Board of Education is over-organized. It is recommended 
that all standing committees be abolished — that special ques- 
tions requiring investigation be referred to temporary com- 
mittees expected to report directly to the full Board; that 
administrative details be left to responsible executives who 
should be controlled through the full Board ; that no matters 
of policy be discussed in informal committee meetings; and 
that the Board be reduced in number to five (5), and all 
members be elected at large. The reduction in number of 
the Board cannot be accomplished until 1920, but plans should 
be made immediately to accomplish it at that time. 

(b) Purchase of Supplies. The purchase of school supplies is so 
large an item of cost, that we recommend that the Board of 
Education adopt definite written specifications for supplies, 

• including coal, and have all materials purchased on a com- 
petitive basis according to these specifications in co-operation 
with the Municipal University and the City Testing Labora- 
tory. 

(c) Reorganization of the Supervisory Force. The supervision of 
the schools in Akron is excellent so far as it goes, but it is 
done at the expense of the personal health of the supervisors 
and at the expense of the necessary expansion of the educa- 
tional activities into new lines. There is probably no body of 
executives in any organization in Akron spending more time 
and energy in supervision than the Superintendent and prin- 
cipals of the Akron Schools. On account, however, of the 
growth of the schools — the rate of which will be seen in the 
full report — these supervisory officers are greatly overloaded 
with work and responsibility and as a result many school 
activities are carried on through regulation and formal con- 
trol rather than by co-operation through consultation between 
Superintendent, Supervisors, Principals and Teachers. It is 
difficult to successfully conduct a large industrial enterprise 
with an organization on the plans of the present public school 
organization. There must be, of course, one superintendent 
primarily responsible for policy, but under him should be 
three (3) or four (4) high-grade, responsible assistant super- 
intendents. Surely a school system involving 22,000 children 
and 600 teachers and which expends $650,000 per year, with a 
bonded debt of $1,175,000, is Avarranted in following the best 
administrative practice of industrial establishments employ- 
ing 22,000 hands. 



It is, therefore, recommended that the Superintendent of 
Schools be given three (3) Assistant Superintendents respon- 
sible to him : a male Assistant Superintendent of Schools re- 
sponsible for the supervision of instruction in the grammar 
grades ; a female Assistant Superintendent of S'chools respon- 
sible for supervision of instruction in the primary grades; and 
a male Assistant Superintendent responsible for the super- 
vision of instruction of all special school activities and com- 
munity center work ; and an adequate staff of supervisors in 
special subjects not now fully developed in our school system. 

(d) Building Program. There is at present insufficient recogni- 
tion of differences between the needs of various districts in 
the city, and of the growing legitimate demand for community 
center work in schools, and vocational instruction. It _ is 
recommended that each district in Akron be provided with 
the following school plant and equipment : — Auditorium large 
enough for the uses of the adult and child population of the 
district; play-grounds of at least five (5) acres; manual train- 
ing and domestic science equipment sufficient for every pupil 
in grades 7 and 8, for all children of the age of 12 or over in 
the lower grades, and for summer classes; swimming pools 
sufficient for such adults and children as care to use them; 
club-rooms for student and adult clubs in music, art, debating, 
etc. These last may be provided easily by the use of movable 
school furniture in such rooms as may be set apart for this 
work. It is further recommended that in selected congested 
districts the junior high school form of organization with six 
(6) grades in the elementary schools, three (3) grades in the 
junior high school, and three (3) in the senior high school, be 
adopted. The new junior high school building required 
should be provided with all the equipment and plant des- 
cribed above. 

On one page of the full report is outlined a plan of group 
units around a central administration building. This is par- 
ticularly recommended for self-contained semi-suburban com- 
munities within the city area. 

In connection with the above-mentioned building program, 
we recommend that more attention be paid to organized play- 
grounds. The school grounds of Akron are, as a whole, defi- 
cient in playground apparatus, and are not used to any 
appreciable extent outside of school hours and on Saturdays 
for organized play under supervision. Akron cannot afford 
to Longer neglect this avenue of physical and moral education, 
and these playgrounds and the use of them should be as 
much a public school system function as any other portion of 
its work. 

(e) Ventilation. Eighteen schools in Akron, including four rural 
schools, have fairly satisfactory heating and ventilating 
plants. Xii schools have adequate apparatus for the humidi- 
fying of the air. This is a serious l'aull leading in decreased 



working power of pupils and teachers, and predisposing them 
to throat and respiratory troubles. The smoke and dust nui- 
sances are not properly dealt with. In many class rooms the 
air is dirty, as is evidenced by carefully made tests and by 
large soot flares about the hot-air intakes in many of the 
class rooms. The fresh-air intakes are, in at least nineteen 
(19) instances, placed too near the ground level, and no appli- 
ances were observed for washing the air. The temperature of 
the air in the school rooms fluctuates considerably, and in 
many cases excessive temperatures were observed and report- 
ed by teachers. 

We recommend that steps should be taken at once to install 
adequate humidifying apparatus in all schools, and to improve 
the quality of the air by raising the level of the intakes ; and 
when necessary installing washing devices. The latter would 
be unnecessary in any district if the pollution of the air in 
Akron were prevented at its source. This is the only thor- 
oughly satisfactory method of dealing with the smoke nui- 
sance. Therefore, the Committee believes that steps should 
be taken by the community to insist upon the proper use of 
smoke consumers in all our industrial plants, commercial 
buildings and building construction work. 

In all buildings to be constructed each class room should 
have at least two (2) inlets, and in existing buildings where 
dead air in pockets is observed, electric* fans should be in- 
stalled. 

(f) Physical Education. The physical exercises in the public 
schools are well conducted so far as they go, but do not go 
nearly far enough. We have mentioned playgrounds above, 
but believe that there should be enough gymnasiums fully 
equipped with apparatus and shower baths, and under ade- 
quate trained supervision, so that every child going through 
the Akron school system could have a thorough physical de- 
velopment through supervised indoor and outdoor exercise. A 
healthy mind requires large muscles, and the future of city 
life will depend upon the proper muscular training of the 
children. 

(g) Manual Training-. As mentioned above, manual training for 
boys and the domestic arts training for girls, should be pro- 
vided for all children in the seventh and eighth grades, for 

' the children of all grades from the age of twelve (12) up, 
and for children of all ages who show special aptitude. 

(h) Community Center Work. The investment of the community 
in its school system should be used for all ages of the com- 
munity in proportion to their needs and desires. A school 
should be not only available, but as recommended above, there 
should be an Assistant Superintendent whose prime duty 
would be to see that activities were encouraged, properly 
organized and carried on. All kinds of social activities, 
lectures on science, hygiene and public questions, the dis- 



cussion of civic affairs, may be made under proper planning 
and supervision the means of public education and may lead 
the members of the community to higher ideals. 

(i) Night School Work. Not only night school work for the 
adult, but continuation classes for the young people, should 
be provided at any hour of the day or night consistent with 
good judgment, and to accord with the industrial organiza- 
tion of the community in a way so that any individual who so 
desires may pursue his education at the same time that he is 
earning his living. With particular reference to the teaching 
of English to the aliens, the activities of which were, up to 
the last year, conducted wholly by agencies outside of the 
Board of Education, and during the past year were paid for 
by the Chamber of Commerce, it is recommended that this 
night school instruction be taken over completely as a large 
and important function of the Board of Education — that it 
be developed in a way to provide English for the aliens, night 
school instruction for the day workers, part time day instruc- 
tion, and co-operative vocational courses which should be 
developed to the highest possible degree and co-ordinated 
with the proposed community center work under the direction 
of the recommended special Assistant Superintendent. So 
long as the state admits the alien, surely it should see that 
he is educated to a degree that qualifies him for American 
citizenship. 

(j) Records and Publicity. The accounts of the Board of Educa- 
tion are neatly kept and are sufficient to meet the require- 
ments of the law and to protect the schools against pecula- 
tion. They are, however, on a cash basis only, and cannot be 
used therefore for determining the actual operating costs for 
the year, much less month by month. They are entirely in- 
adequate for administrative purposes. While the accounts of 
the Board are audited by state authorities every two years, 
there has been no independent audit by private accountants 
since 1913. It is urgently recommended that an indepen- 
dent audit of the accounts be made at an early date, and that 
in co-operation with the state authorities a system of ac- 
counting be installed which will show the actual costs in 
total and unit form, of every type of school function and 
main objects of expenditure. It is also recommended that 
the accounts of all students' organizations or funds under 
student control, be kept by the commercial departments of 
the high schools, and that regular financial statements 
1 hereon be published. The publicity given to school affairs 
;iik1 records should he greater than a1 present. The absence 
of printed statistical, financial and descriptive reports is a 
grave obstacle to the ease of administration of the schools 
and to the understanding of the school situation by the people 
wlin pay the hills. Printed annual" reports should he issued 
giving educational and financial information, and a con- 
solidated quarterly statement along the same line should he 

10 



issued for the use of the Board and the public press. This 
full frank publicity would give strength to the Board in the 
conduct of its work, not only from the standpoint of the data 
available, but through the knowledge placed thereby at the 
disposal of the community. 

(k) Teachers' Salaries. A thorough study of the salary schedule 
could not be made with the time at our disposal, but enough 
work was done to warrant the judgment that the salary 
schedule of the Akron schools is inadequate and such as to 
subject the system to competition of neighboring and larger 
cities for the best teachers. The rate of pay in the city must 
depend largely on the amount necessary to support teachers 
at suitable standards of living. Prices have so increased and 
Akron has grown so rapidly, that a scientific schedule cannot 
be drafted without a thorough local inquiry. It is recom- 
mended, therefore, that a joint committee from the Board 
of Education, Superintendent, Principals, Teachers and 
various citizens' organizations, be formed to make the nec- 
essary studies and formulate a new salary schedule. 

(1) The Platoon System. The Committee is not in favor of any 
two-platoon system in which each group of children is taught 
different subjects by different teachers each of whom is a 
specialist in his subject. This platoon system has had two 
main arguments advanced in favor of it : one, the greater 
use of the school plant; and the other, the larger amount of 
vocational training given the child. On the former, no satis- 
factory proof has ever been produced that either capital or 
current expense is smaller under the platoon than under the 
original system. This subject is discussed fully in the main 
report. On the second point, the Committee is certainly in 
favor, as this report evidences, of all the better forms of voca- 
tional training, but we believe that it is wrong for young 
children to be under the instruction of several different 
teachers. Each of these teachers naturally places emphasis 
upon the special subject and the child thereby loses the broad 
general development that he most needs. Careful considera- 
tion has to be given by a teacher to individual peculiarities 
in a way which only one teacher familiar with all the subjects 
taught can give and it is far better for the child to have one 
teacher training him rather than several teachers each teach- 
ing a subject or a small group of subjects. This can not be 
the place to expand this thought, which is done in the full 
report. There are a few exceptions of special subjects in 
the upper grades. 

(m) The Shift Plan. In order to meet the needs of congested 
districts and the problems involved in unusual con- 
ditions of the school plant and equipment, there is given in 
the full report, in detail, a possible organization of the school 
consisting of three (3) regular class rooms and one (1) special 
class room which can be conducted under a shift plan with 

11 



great economy of space and with but one teacher for each 
class without, therefore, specialized teaching. We would 
recommend to the Board of Education, that they try out in 
some congested district of Akron, the particular shift plan 
which is mentioned in the full report. 

(n) Educational Co-operation. We believe that much gain can be 
enjoyed by the community if a greater degree of co-operation 
between the various Akron educational institutions were 
worked out. The Municipal University, the public school 
system and the Kent Normal School can get together in a 
way that will mean improved educational advantages for all, 
and will give the taxpayer full return for his money. Much 
has already been accomplished along this line in Akron, and 
we believe that more is possible. 

3. Course to be Pursued Leading to the Adoption of These 
Recommendations. These recommendations are intended to establish 
a community program, the adoption of which in full will undoubt- 
edly take several years; many of them, however, can be put into 
effect immediately." The adoption of the various recommendations 
mentioned above, and the others mentioned in the main report, un- 
doubtedly lies within the special authority of the Board of Educa- 
tion. They are the officially constituted officers whose prime busi- 
ness it is to care for the public schools. We therefore recommend 
to them that as rapidly as possible these changes be put into ef- 
fect, We believe that they are scientifically correct, that they 
are reasonable, and that they undoubtedly will make for the in- 
creased welfare of the children and of the community. 

Many of the recommendations cannot be put into effect until the 
Board of Education has more money to spend. The first thing, there- 
fore, that the Board should do is to employ accounting experts to 
revamp its accounting system, to let those who pay the bills know 
where their money is spent and how. 

It is recommended that the various clubs and organizations of the 
city should make this report the subject of numerous meetings in 
order to become thoroughly posted, and then they should support the 
Board of Education in carrying out these plans. 

Finally, the public school system of Akron needs more money. 
It is impossible to develop the school system in a way that will give 
the children of Akron what they need without larger expenditures 
for plant and larger expenditures for current expenses. The Smith 
one per cent law is the handicap against which the cities of this 
state in vain attempt to conduct their necessary affairs. We recom- 
mend thai the various organizations of this community get together 
immediately in a city League, for the purpose of taking concerted 
action to secure such amendments to the Smith one per cent law as 
will enable the citizens of Akron to give the financial support to 
the schools they are willing to give, and to remove all competition 
for funds between the Board of Education and the other city 
activities. 

12 



In order that our Board of Education as •• r.i as other municipal 
boards of education and municipal gove.vments in Ohio may be 
able to get permanent relief from the present archaic and short- 
sighted regulations imposed on them by '• < General Assembly, it is 
recommended that concerted action be t; ■ i-n in the cities and larger 
counties by initiative petitions for the purpose of placing on the 
ballot at the next state election a consti ' utional amendment which 
shall require that representation in the General Assembly must be 
based on population. Such petitions must be signed by ten per cent 
of the electors. 

Our cities constitute a majority of our population, but in the legis- 
lature their representatives are hopelessly in the minority because 
of the unfair way in which representation is apportioned. Accord 
ing to the census of 1910, our population was 4,767,121, distributed 
as follows: 

Urban population 2,665,143 

Rural population 2,101.978 

Difference 563,165 

At the present time a much larger proportion of our population 

lives in the larger communities of the state than in 1910. 

The present constitution provides for basing representation on 
population but it also provides that each county shall have at least 
one representative, taking the House of Representatives for illustra- 
tion. After providing that it shall require a population of 47,671 in 
the larger counties to elect a representative, it proceeds to give a 
representative to each of sixty-five counties not one of which has a 
population of 47,671 and whose average population is but 28,136. 
The House of Representatives in the next General Assembly will 
have one hundred and twenty-four members distributed as follows: 

No. Counties Population Representation 

23 Urban 2,938,281 59 

65 Rural .1.828.840 65 

Difference 1,109,441 Total 124 

Although the larger counties outnumber the remainder in popula- 
tion by 1,109,441, they have six less representatives. If the same 
requirement as to population were applied to the smaller counties 
as is applied to the larger, they would have thirty-seven representa- 
tives instead of sixty-five. 

Based on present population the injustice would be still more 
glaring, for the reason that for several decades past the smaller 
counties have been steadily decreasing in population while the more 
populous ones have made remarkable increases, for example: 

Population, Population, 
County 1900 1910 

Vinton 15,330 13,096 

Geauga 14,744 14,670 

Pike 18,172 15,723 

Carroll 16,811 15,761 

13 



Population Population 

County 1900 1910 

Morgan 17,905 16,097 

Morrow 17,879 16,815 

Holmes 19,511 17,909 

Summit 71,715 108,258 

Cuyahoga 439,120 637,426 

Franklin 164,460 221,567 

Butler 56,870 70,271 

Lucas 153,559 192,728 

Mahoning 70,134 116,151 

Stark 94,747 122,987 

If Vinton county with a population of 13,096 is entitled to one 
representative, then Summit county with its present population is 
entitled to fifteen, or based on its 1910 population it is entitled to 
eight, but as matters stand Vinton has one and Summit has two. 

Geauga county has one representative and Cuyahoga has thirteen. 
But if Geauga county is entitled to one, then Cuyahoga county is 
entitled to forty-three according to the 1910 census, and sixty based 
on present population. 

It is. therefore seen that the legislature is not only controlled by a 
minority of our population, but by a minority made up of the most 
backward and least progressive parts of our population. As long as 
our people permit such an unjust and undemocratic minority rule, 
the needs and problems of our modern industrial communities will 
not be intelligently considered or acted upon by our General As- 
sembly. No government can claim to be representative when it is 
so organized that control of it is vested in a minority. It is time to 
establish representative government in Ohio. 

We believe that the cities of the state should combine with the 
immediate purpose of so changing the constitution that they would 
be free from this unfair, illogical handicap. Growing cities like 
Akron are penalized for their growth. This is a matter of vital con- 
cern, and we believe that the people can be trusted not to spend 
more money than necessary in the education of their children. 

The education of the children costs money — but who is there who 
would not spend his last cent in order that his children might grow 
up clean, healthy, well educated? 

The children of today are citizens of tomorrow, and the best in- 
vestment that the citizens of today can give their children is the 
best they know of physical, mental and moral education. 

Respectfullv submitted, 

W. C. Geer 

E. D. Fritch 

J. E. Good 

P. W. Litchfield 

Francis Seiberling 

Educational Committee. 
August 27, 1917. 



u 



TABLE OF CONTENTS 



Page 

LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL 19 

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 

Needed Amendments to Smith One Per Cent Law 21 

Overlapping of the School and Tax Year 21 

Bond Issues on the Serial Plan 21 

Increase in Expenditures 22 

Per Pnpil Costs 22 

Building Program 22 

The "Shift" Plan 22 

Accounting 23 

School Reporting 23 

Over-Organization of the Board of Education 24 

Purchasing and Testing of Supplies 24 

. .Over-size Classes 24 

The Type and Condition of School Buildings 25 

The School Grounds 25 

Repairs to Buildings 25 

Ventilation 25 

Sanitary Arrangements 26 

Lighting 26 

Cloak-rooms 26 

Seating Accommodation 27 

Caretaking Service 27 

The Type of School Building in Relation to the Extension of 

Community Center "Work 27 

The Course of' Study 28 

Automatic Student Administration 28 

The Work in Reading 29 

The Teaching- of Geography 29 

The Teaching of History 29 

The Teaching of Arithmetic 29 

Physical Exercises 29 

Civics 30 

The Teaching of Music 30 

The Teaching of Drawing and Art 30 

The Work in Written and Oral Language 30 

Spelling Lessons 30 

Instruction in the High Schools 31 

The Class-room Technique of Teachers 31 

The Night Schools 31 

• Reorganizing of the Supervisory Force 31 

Educational Records 32 

Promotions 32 

Retardation and Over-age 32 

Dropping Out of School 33 

15 



SUMMARY OF FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS— Cont'd. 

Page 

Medica 1 I nspection 33 

"Working Day of Principals and Teachers 33 

Teachers' Training 33 

' " Salary Schedule 33 

Incompleteness of School Equipment and its Relation to Com- 
munity Center Work (Chart) 34 

Community Center Work in Relation to School Reporting 35 

PART A— THE RAISING AND ADMINISTRATION OF 
SCHOOL FUNDS. 

I. General Financial Facts. 

Sources of School Funds 36 

Increase of Current Revenue and Funds Applicable to Capital 

Outlay (Tables I, II, and charts) 37 

How School Revenues are Limited by State Legislation 

(Table III) 40 

How School Revenues and Capital Funds are Spent (Tables 

IV, V, VI and charts) 41 

Condition of School Funds (Tables VILA, VILB, VILC, 

VILD, VIII and chart) 47 

School Finances and the Building Program (Table IX and 

charts) 52 

The Schools and the City Government as Competitors for 

Public Funds ( Tables' X, XI and charts) 58 

II. Financial Methods. 

Budget Procedure (Table XII) •- 62 

Bond Issues (Tables XIII, XIV, XV and charts) 63 

Financial Reports 68 

III. Business Administration. 

Organization of the Board (Chart) 68 

Procedure of the Board 70 

Accounting 71 

Audits 74 

Office Arrangements 74 

( i in tracts 75 

Supplies (Table XVI) - 75 

PART B— THE PHYSICAL PLANT AND EQUIPMENT. 
I. Sites and Buildings, 

General (illustrations and Table XVII) 77 

Locations and Sites — Summary of Inspection 84 

School Grounds — Summary of Inspection 84 

Structural Conditions — Summary of Inspection 85 

Fire Escapes (Table XVIII) 88 

Beating and Ventilating Plants — Summary of Inspection 

(Table XIX and chart) 89 

Genera] Sanitation Summary of Inspection (Table XX and 

elm 1 1 i 94 

16 



PART B— THE PHYSICAL PLANT AND EQUIPMENT— Cont'd. 

Page 

II. Ventilation and Heating". 

General Discussion 98 

Location of Air Inlets and Outlets in Class-rooms 100 

Floor Space per Pupil 101 

Cubic Contents of Air Space per Sitting 102 

Quantity of Air Supplied per Minute per Pupil ». 102 

Temperature (Tables XXI and XXII) 103 

Humidity (Tables XXIII- A, XXIII-B and XXIII-C) 107 

Dust and Smoke (Charts and Table XXIV) 109 

III. Lighting- 113 

' IV. Cloakrooms 115 

V. Seating _ 115 

VI. Cleaning of Rooms 115 

VII. Miscellaneous 116 

VIII. A School Building Policy for Akron 117 

PART C— WHAT THE SCHOOL REVENUE BUYS FOR THE 
BOYS AND GIRLS OF AKRON. 

I. What is Taught in the Public Schools of Akron. 

General 123 

The Elementary Course of Study 125 

II. How the Subjects of the Course of Study are Taught in the 

Elementary Schools of Akron. 

Basis of Judgment 127 

General Characteristics of Class-room Instruction in the Ele- 
mentary Schools 130 

a — The Study-Recitation . 131 

b — Automatic Pupil Administration 132 

How the Recitation Proper is Conducted 133 

Excerpts from Typical Field Notes 134 

Descriptive Summaries of Field Notes : 

The Teaching of Reading , 140 

Geography 142 

History 144 

Arithmetic 145 

Physical Exercises (with illustrations) 146 

Civics 148 

Music 149 

Art Work (with illustrations) 150 

Language 154 

' Spelling 156 

Omissions from the Elementary School Course in Akron (with 

illustrations) 156 

17 



PART C— WHAT THE SCHOOL REVENUE BUYS— Cont'd. 

Page 

III. Instructions in the High Schools of Akron. 

General Characteristics 161 

Class-room Observation (with illustrations) 161 

The Relative Weight of the High School and the Elementary- 
School in the Life of the Community 166 

The Night Schools of Akron 167 

Vocational Training Through Co-operation Between the High 

Schools and Commercial and Industrial Concerns 168 

The Schools in Summer (with illustrations) 168 

IV. Educational Administration and Supervision of Instruction 

in Akron 171 

School Studies and Educational Tests 174 

V. Educational Records and Reports in Akron 174 

VI. Promotion of School Children in Akron. 

General 175 

Percentage of Promotions (Tables XXV-A and XXV-B) L76 

VII. Retardation and Over-age in Akron (Tables XXVI, 
XXVII, XXVIII, XXIX, XXX) 183 

VIII. Elimination of Children or their Dropping - out Before 
Completing 1 the Elementary School Course 196 

IX. The Exceptional Child 198 

X. Medical Inspection and Open-window Rooms in the Schools 

(Tables XXXI, XXXII, XXXIII, and illustrations) 199 

XI. The Academic and Professional Training- of Teachers in 

the Akron Schools, their Working- Day, their Pay and 

Length of Service. 

Training (Tables XXXIV and XXXV) 214 

The Working Day of Principals and Teachers 217 

How Akron Teachers are Paid (Table XXXVI) 218 

Length of Service of Teachers (Table XXXVII) 222 

XII. The Mutual Relations of the School and the Community. 
Telling School Facts to the Community (with illustrations).— 224 

A School Community Center Program for Akron 227 

The Wider Use of School Plant Versus the More Extensive 

and Intensive Use of Community Interest: 

a — General 230 

b — Physical Training, Equipment and Activities 230 

c — Auditoria and their Uses in Akron (with illustrations) 231 
d — Special Rooms and Equipment -'■>- 

APPENDIX : 235 

Page I —Table XVII-A. 

Page M Schedule Eor Drawing and Ar1 Course. 

18 



LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL 

Dr. W. C. Geer, 

Chairman, Educational Committee, 

Chamber of Commerce, 

Akron, Ohio. 

Dear Sir : 

I beg leave to submit herewith a report on the Public School System 
of Akron. It covers three main topics : 

A. The Raising and Administration of School Funds. 

B. The Physical Plant and Equipment. 

C. What the School Revenue Buys for the Boys and Girls of Akron. 

This report attempts to tell only what was seen by the writer and 
his co-worker. Mr. Thos. L. Hinckley, to co-ordinate the information 
supplied by the Board of Education and its employees, and to make 
such broad constructive suggestions and recommendations as seem 
warranted by the available facts. No attempt has been made to work 
out these suggestions and recommendations in minute detail, for 
four reasons : 

1. Details could be develupr-d on the ground only after a prolonged 
study of conditions such as would be necessary for any one 
undertaking the administration of the system. 

2. Details must change to conform with the needs of the ever chang- 
ing social organization of a large city. 

3. Such recommendations as seem to be based on sound principles 
having been adopted, the proper persons to develop details 
would be those already most conversant with the existing situa- 
tion and who would need to go through the process of working 
up details in order, later, to administer the system readily and 
efficiently. Any other procedure would involve duplication and 
waste of effort. 

4. The science of education is not an exact science, and he who 
would seek to crystallize recommendations into hard and fast 
forms would be rash indeed. 

Throughout, the writer has attempted, first, to describe condi- 
tions as he sees them, next, to set forth the evidential data on which 
he has formed his opinion and, lastly, to make suggestions or recom- 
mendations. This was done to assist the reader in following the report 
and to form his own judgment of its soundness. The building up of 
a community educational system is fraught with grave responsibility 
to all those co-operating in the work, and it is hoped, therefore, that 
the many tables, diagrams and analyses, and other supporting data 
in the succeeding pages, will not be passed over lightly. All the 
financial figures, and all the data as to physical measurement were 
supplied by school authorities. The former were worked over and ana- 
lyzed carefully in co-operation with the Clerk of the Board, to whose un- 
failing courtesy the examiners owe much. For the latter the inquiry 

19 



is indebted to the Superintendent, the school architect, the principals 
and the teachers, who gave unstintingly of their time in a very busy 
season. For the facts also as to the special equipment and activities 
of the schools, and as to the employment of the teachers' time, we are 
indebted to the supervising and teaching staff for their courtesy. 

In his study of the schools of Akron the writer saw much to admire ; 
but little time has been taken or effort expended to show that Akron 
has done better or worse than some other particular cities. Almost 
any city with reasonably efficient schools can find either comfort or 
discouragement as to its comparative standing. To be satisfied be- 
cause others have done worse is always dangerous.. The true standard 
of success is the degree with which attainment compares with the pos- 
sibilities. The real question at issue is, "Can Akron's schools give 
better service to their community?" This report attempts to answer 
this question in the light of Akron conditions and of present knowledge. 

The fact basis for the discussion of class-room instruction was 
gathered at first hand by the writer personally. He was granted 
every courtesy, went where he wished, saw what he desired to see, 
and was offered no suggestions as to what he should see or how lie 
should see it. In only one case did he return to a school to visit a 
teacher on the suggestion of an employee of the board. 

In order that he might be fully cognizant of the methods being 
employed by the examiner and the sort of experiences he was having, 
the Superintendent was present at many of the class exercises ob- 
served. This arrangement also gave the examiner an opportunity to 
observe the nature of the official relations existing between the Superin- 
tendent and the teaching force. At other exercises the examiner was 
the sole observer. It is interesting to note that there was less em- 
barrassment on the part of teachers when both were present than when 
the examiner was alone. Altogether, this study of the Akron schools 
has been a delightful experience, and I wish here to thank formally 
the Board, the Superintendent, the Clerk of the Board, the architect, 
the principals and teachers for freely given assistance without which 
this report would not have been possible. 

My thanks are also due to Professor Hardgrove of the University for 
his valuable work on the heating and ventilating tests carried out in 
co-operation with Mr. Hinckley. 

Respectfully submitted, 

HORACE L. BRITTAIN. 
July 10, 1917. 



20 



SUMMARY OF FINDINGS AND 
RECOMMEND ATIO N S 

Needed Amendments to Smith One Per Cent Law. 

The business affairs of the Board of Education have been admin- 
istered with economy. This economy has been so extreme that 
necessary elements in a modern educational system— referred to later 
— have been sacrificed. Owing to the operation of the State tax law 
the Operating Account is liable to show a deficit of $75,000 at the end 
of the current school year. Out of 475 elementary school classes on 
April 20, 1917, 165 had a membership of 45 Or over, and 67 of 50 or 
over. In spite of anything which may properly be done to secure more 
intensive use of school plant, these conditions of financial stringency 
and too large classes are bound to grow worse instead of better. 

In view of the growth of the Akron system, the desirability of 
great extensions of the school work, and the increasing difficulty 
of securing enough money to meet the current needs of the schools 
as at present organized, it is urgently recommended that concerted 
action be taken to secure such amendments of the Smith One Per 
Cent Law, so called, as will enable the City of Akron to give that 
financial support to the schools that it is willing to give, and will 
remove all danger of competition for funds between the Board of 
Education and the City. 

Overlapping of the School and Tax Year. 

The tax year and the school year overlap six months. The result 
is that, with Akron's growing school system, the Board of Education 
not only has to estimate for a school year but has to guess at the 
probable expenditures for the next six months. There can be, there- 
fore, no scientific or clear-cut school budget — the prime necessity for 
financial administration. 

It is recommended that, in conjunction with other Ohio cities, 
the Legislature be urged to harmonize the tax and the school year 
at the earliest opportunity. 

Bond Issues on the Serial Plan. 

Of recent years all school construction has been paid for out of 
borrowed funds. Bond issues, however, create current liabilities 
which diminish by so much the margin available for the operation of 
schools. During the past six years, the current revenue has increased 
77.6%, and the portion applicable to interest and repayment of princi- 
pal has increased 85.9%. The method of repaying borrowed funds 
now used in Akron, or used until very recently, has aggravated con- 
ditions by postponing first repayments of principal beyond the end 
of the first year and sometimes for over twenty years after the assump- 
tion of the liability. No sinking fund has been provided for the bonds 
not on the serial plan. 

21 



It is recommended that in future all bonds be issued on the 
strictly serial plan, that sinking funds be established at once for 
those bonds not on the serial plan, and that, as soon as possible 
after the amendment of the State law, at least part of the cost of 
construction be paid out of current funds. 

Increase in Expenditures. 

As nearly as can be determined from available records, during 
the last decade, salaries of administration have increased 167%, sal- 
aries of elementary school teachers 116%, cost of maintenance of plant 
386%, and debt charges 121%. Educational salaries have not kept 
pace with physical costs. 

In the interests of the children, investment in bricks and mortar 
and their upkeep should not be allowed to take precedence over 
investment in brains. 

Per Pupil Costs. 

In 1914-1915 the cost per pupil (in average daily attendance) of 
conducting the schools in 50 cities of over 100,000 was $49.36* accord- 
ing to the 1916 Report of the United States Commissioner of Education. 
From 1911-1912 to 1915-1916 Akron spent on the average, per pupil, 
$39.80. In 1915-1916 it spent $42.70. 

If Akron provided adequate instruction in Manual Training, Do- 
mestic Arts and Physical Training to all the students in her ele- 
mentary schools, and provided auditoria, gymnasia and swimming 
pools sufficient to meet her school and community needs, there 
would not be this disparity in costs. 

Building Program. 

To complete the present building program of the Board of Edu- 
cation, a supplementary bond issue of over $440,000 will be necessary. 
This does not provide for necessary structural changes in existing 
schools. If it is decided to rebuild or partially rebuild the Perkins, 
Howe, Kent and Spicer Schools — which is desirable — the sum required 
will be much larger. The old Perkins building constitutes not only a 
disgrace but a menace to safety. 

The Shift Plan. 

All this construction will, in any event, be necessary in the near 
future ; but the plant, once constructed, is capable of being made some- 
what elastic by the adoption in crowded centers of a longer school day 
and of a "shift" plan not requiring departmentalization. The reasons 
for not suggesting a platoon organization, requiring departmentaliza- 
tion throughout, are fully set forth on pages 159 and 160. (For dis- 
cussion of and diagrams illustrating "shift" plans, see pages 52 to 
56 inclusive.) 

*This is, of course, based on data not strictly comparable. 

22 



Accounting. 

The accounts of the Board are neatly kept and are sufficient to 
meet the requirements of the law and to protect the schools against 
peculation. They are, however, on a cash basis only and cannot, there- 
fore, be used for determining actual operating costs for the year, much 
less month by month. Although fund ledgers are kept, there is no true 
appropriation accounting. The accounts as they are cannot be used as 
a basis for a scientific budget, For these and other reasons the Board's 
accounts are entirely inadequate for administrative purposes. 

While the accounts of the Board are audited by the State authorities 
every two years, there has been no independent audit by private ac- 
countants since 1913. 

Apparently the Board's accounting is not used for purposes of lab- 
oratory instruction in the Commercial Courses. Neither, apparently, 
are accounts of student-controlled funds kept by the various commer- 
cial departments of the High Schools. The educational results to the 
students of keeping their own school accounts in good form and seeing 
that they get full publicity should not be lost. 

It is urgently recommended that an independent audit of the ac- 
counts be made at an early date and that, in co-operation with the 
State authorities, a system of accounting be installed which will 
show the actual costs, in total and unit form, of every function, 
type of school, school, and main objects of expenditure. The uni- 
form school accounting system recently adopted by the State of 
New York provides a model which could readily be modified to 
meet the needs of Akron and the requirements of the State law. 
(See pages 71-74.) 

It is further suggested that the accounts of the Board be used to 
give laboratory practice to students in commercial courses under 
the direction of the accounting officer of the Board in co-operation 
with the heads of commercial departments. 

It is also recommended that the accounts of all student organiza- 
tions or funds under student control be kept by the commercial 
departments of the High Schools, and that regular financial state- 
ments thereon be printed in the school papers, if any, and finally 
in the annual report of the Board of Education. 

School Reporting. 

The absence of printed statistical, financial and descriptive re- 
ports was a grave obstacle to the prosecution of this study. It must be 
a graver obstacle to the ease of administration of the schools and an 
insuperable obstacle to the understanding of the school situation by 
the people who pay the bills. 

It is recommended that in view of their small cost and great util- 
ity, printed annual reports be issued covering the following points : 

1. Work accomplished during the year; 

2. Steps in advance for the ensuing year; 

3. A summary operating account of the previous year; 

4. Summarized estimates for the ensuing year; 

23 



5. A classified balance sheet; 

6. Financial statistics ; 

7. Educational statistics (for which there is an excellent basis 
already in existence). 

It is further recommended that consolidated quarterly statements 
along the same lines be issued for the use of the Board and the 
press. (See pages 174 and 224.) 

Over-organization of the Board of Education. 

It is felt that the Board of Education is over-organized. In other 
cities where a similar organization exists it has been found to inter- 
fere with the prompt despatch of business or with the proper discus- 
sion of important policies in full committee, or with both. 
It is recommended : 

1. That all standing committees be abolished, or at least reduced 
to two or three ; 

2. That when a special question requiring investigation comes up 

for a decision it be referred to a special temporary committee 
which will be expected to report fully and will be discontinued 
on completing its work; 

3. That all administrative details be left to responsible executives 
who should be controlled through regular and special reports; 

4. That no matter of policy be discussed in informal committee 
meetings or otherwise in private ; 

5. That the Board be reduced in number to five and that all mem- 
bers be elected at large. 

Purchasing and Testing of Supplies. 

At various times the Board has had materials purchased by it tested 
in co-operation with the Municipal University. 

It is recommended that the Board — after adopting definite stand- 
ards of service and make-up — have all materials purchased by it, 
including coal, regularly tested before payment and that the nec- 
essary co-operative arrangements for this be established with the 
Municipal University and the City Testing Laboratory. 

Over-size Classes. 

Under the prevailing conditions of rapid expansion the Board 
of Education lias been remarkably successful in providing regular 
class-room accommodation for the children. Only three portable build- 
ings were found in use. This condition, however, has not been brought 
about without the sacrifice of important elements of school efficiency. 
Three schools report that they have been compelled to use their gym- 
nasia for kindergarten purposes, while rooms designed for manual 
1 raining and domestic arts have been occupied by regular classes. Un- 
til this year the records show that the average number of children per 
teacher has qo1 been increasing, but this year a decided increase in the 
number of over-size classes has occurred. 

24 



This constitutes a danger signal. The children of Akron have a 
right to an all-round education under good conditions of school 
housing. 

The Type and Condition of School Buildings. 

The school buildings of Akron are of many types 'but there has 
been a progressive improvement. The latest models, such as the Jen- 
nings and the Bowen Schools, are satisfactory in most respects al- 
though, in the latter, the ceiling of the auditorium is too low, the model 
flat is not well lighted, and the surrounding conditions are not entirely 
desirable from the standpoint of health. All the school plants in Ak- 
ron were scored for location, grounds, structure, heating, ventilation 
and sanitation. The average total score of the entire system was 70, 
that of the High Schools 82, that of elementary schools 71.5, and that 
of country schools 56.5. Outside of the -small country schools, the scores 
varied between 50.5 for the Perkins and 93 for the West High School. 
It is recommended that in future no school buildings be erected 
in Akron which would score less than 90 on the basis used in this 
study. 

The School Grounds. 

The school grounds of Akron are, as a whole, deficient in play- 
ground apparatus, and not used to any appreciable extent outside of 
school hours and on Saturdays for organized play under supervision. 
Akron cannot afford to neglect longer this avenue to physical and 
moral education. 

Repairs to Buildings. 

Eight of the school buildings in Akron may be considered as 

structurally perfect. Twenty-three are not fireproof in the modern 

sense, although six of these are small schools of the rural or semi-rural 

type. Sixteen show flaws calling for repairs. The neglect of repairs 

at the Howe, Kent and Perkins Schools, as they appeared at the time 

of inspection, can hardly be explained satisfactorily. The fire-escapes 

on some schools are of such an unsatisfactory type that it appears that 

orders have been given not to use them except in case of actual fire. 

All buildings should be put in a state of good repair at once if only 

for the educational and moral effect. The fire-escapes should be 

remodelled so that they can be used safely by children either in 

fire-drills or in case of actual fire. 

Ventilation. 

Eighteen schools in Akron, including four rural schools, have 
fairly satisfactory heating and ventilating plants. No schools have 
adequate apparatus for the humidifying of the air. This is a serious 
fault, leading to decreased working power of pupils and teachers and 
pre-disposing to throat and respiratory troubles. The smoke and dust 
nuisances are not properly dealt with. In many class-rooms the air is 
dirty as is evidenced by careful tests and by the large soot-flares about 



the hot-air intakes in many classrooms. The fresh-air intakes are, in 
at least nineteen instances, placed too near the ground level and no 
appliances were observed for washing the air. The temperature of 
the air in the school-rooms fluctuates considerably and in many cases 
excessive temperatures were observed and reported by teachers. 

Steps should be taken at once to install adequate humidifying 
apparatus in all schools and to improve the quality of the air by 
raising the level of the intakes and, when necessary, installing 
washing devices. The latter would be unnecessary in any dis- 
trict if the pollution of the air in Akron were prevented at its 
source. This is the only thoroughly satisfactory method of deal- 
ing with the smoke nuisance. Pittsburgh and other cities have 
recently done much along this line. 

In all buildings to be constructed, each class-room should have at 
least two inlets and two outlets and in existing buildings where 
dead air in pockets is observed electric fans should be installed. 

Sanitary Arrangements. 

Tlie Grace School is now the only remaining school in Akron 
which has outside closets. In only one school building — the Crosby- 
were toilets and other sanitary arrangements found defective in regard 
to all four main points of adequacy, type, lighting and air conditions 
(odors), although the Howe, the Henry, the Perkins and the Bryan 
score very low. 

The Grace School should be provided at once with inside toilets, 
or outside toilets with proper heating and running water should 
be installed. All toilet arrangements in other schools should be put 
into unobjectionable condition. 

Lighting. 

The lighting of Akron school-rooms is probably their best fea- 
ture from the standpoint of Hygiene. Three hundred and seventy- 
three class-rooms, out of 433 reported on. may be regarded as being 
sufficiently well lighted. The others are practically all in old build- 
ings which will soon be replaced. In all proposed buildings adequate 
provision is being made. In some of the old buildings class-rooms are 
lighted from more than one side, but unilateral lighting is now the 
definite policy of the Board. Akron is to be congratulated on her rec- 
ord in respect to the lighting of school-rooms. 

Cloak-rooms. 

Only 38 class-rooms have cloak-rooms below the present legal 
standard. Two hundred and forty-three rooms are provided with 
cloak-room space inside the class-rooms. This is an economical method 
of construction and there is no evidence that it is unhygienic. The 
separate cloak-room is, however, more desirable from the standpoint 
of aesthetics and probably of ventilation. 

It is recommended that in all future construction the separate 
cloak-room be adopted, and that the experiment be made of 
putting open grill- work in the bottom of the screens at present used 
in class-rooms to shut off the cloak-room areas. 

26 



Seating Accommodation. 

The seating accommodations of the Akron schools are satisfactory 
according to all accepted standards. Good results are, however, now 
being obtained elsewhere from the use of movable furniture and 

It is recommended that the experiment of using such furniture be 
tried out in Akron, particularly in certain large class-rooms which 
might be used as club-rooms and auditoria for community 
purposes. 

Caretaking' Service. 

The cleaning of school buildings in Akron, with extremely few 
and minor exceptions is entirely adequate. 

It is recommended that time-sheets be kept by all caretakers so 
that, in connection with an improved accounting system, accurate 
cleaning costs may be established as a means of caretaking control. 

The Type of School Building in Relation to the Extension of Com- 
munity Center Work. 

The type of school building in use in Akron is determined largely 
by the type of organization which provides for an eight-year ele- 
mentary course and a four-year high school course, with a five-hour 
school day, a five-day school week, and a ten-month school year. There 
is at present insufficient recognition of differences between the needs 
of various districts in the city, and of the growing and legitimate de- 
mand for vocational instruction and community center work in schools. 
It is recommended that each district in Akron be provided with 
the following school plant and equipment : 
a — Auditoria large enough for the uses of the adult and child 

population of the district ; 
b — Playgrounds of at least five acres in connection with all schools 

having Grades 7 and 8, or beyond ; 
c — Manual training and domestic arts equipment sufficient for ev- 
ery pupil in Grades 7 and 8, for all children of the age of 12 
or over in the lower grades, and for summer classes ; 
d — Swimming pools sufficient for such adults and children as care 

to use them ; 
e — Club-rooms for student and adult clubs in music, art, debating, 
etc. (These may be provided easily by the use of movable 
school furniture.) 
It is further recommended that in selected congested districts the 
Junior High School form of organization — with six grades in the 
Elementary Schools, three grades in the Junior High School and 
three in the Senior High School — be tried out, the new Junior 
High School building required being provided with all the equip- 
ment and plant described above. 

It is suggested that where new large eight-grade buildings are 
erected, that Grades 7 and 8 of surrounding overflowing schools 
be moved to the new building which could then be supplied with 

27 



plant and equipment as above described, sufficiently large to sup- 
ply the whole neighborhood. 

On page 120 is outlined a plan of grouped units around a central 
administration building. This would be particularly suitable for 
self-contained, semi-suburban communities within the city area. 
Finally, it is recommended that a joint conference of the Board of 
Education and various citizen organizations be instituted to draw 
up a diversified building program for Akron's schools, based on 
school and community needs. 

The Course of Study. 

The theoretical basis of the Course of Study is excellent, giving 
recognition to the necessity of expression as well as impression, the 
importance of the motor element in education and of a "rich" school 
environment. 

In the High Schools the theory is well carried out in practice, but, 
with the exception of the Bowen, the elementary schools have neither 
the plant nor equipment universally recognized as the sine qua non for 
modern elementary education. In the new schools about to be con- 
structed, care is being taken to provide the facilities for manual train- 
ing, domestic arts, gymnasium work, auditorium activities, etc., neces- 
sary to provide a many-sided environment, and adequate provision for 
the all-round development of child life through motor expression. 

Within the limits of the present elementary curriculum and with the 
facilities at present afforded, remarkable scope is being given for the 
self-expression of children. The course in drawing and art is particu- 
larly well developed and in the upper grades has recently been 
strengthened by the addition of commercial poster work. On page II 
of the Appendix will be found the schedule in drawing and art for the 
last semester. 

The school exercises in the academic branches fall under two main 
types : The study-recitation, in which the teacher guides the pupils in 
the study of advance work, and the recitation proper which, in the 
majority of cases, is conducted by the pupils without undue interfer- 
ence of the teacher. Where this method has been carried out most 
intelligently, the results are truly excellent. The writer has never ob- 
served schools where pupils manifested greater facility in oral expres- 
sion, independence of judgment, ability to think on their feet, and 
capacity for debate. In most schools visited the characteristic recita- 
tion procedure was not followed slavishly. In one of the best recita- 
tions observed, where pupils were given the very best opportunities 
for co-operation and self-expression, the exercise was nominally under 
the charge of the teacher who did little more, however, than to stim- 
ulate thought and discussion. 

Automatic Student Administration. 

Automatic student administration, as it is called in Akron, is 
characteristic of the schools, from the Kindergarten up. In all grades 
pupils had charge of most of the routine operations of the class-rooms 
visited, and in the upper grades the greater number of recitations were 

28 



conducted by pupils. Of course, great differences between teachers 
appeared, some allowing the utmost freedom and seldom interfering 
by word or motion, others securing only the appearance of free action. 
The stimulating effect upon both pupils and teachers was very evident 
in many class-rooms. 

The Work in Reading. 

The work in reading observed was good. The instruction in phonics 
was particularly excellent. 

The Teaching of Geography. 

The teaching of geography is, on the whole, excellent. Most 
class-rooms possess or may readily obtain stereoscopes and stereo- 
scopic views illustrative of geographical topics. Many rooms have 
small industrial collections. The use of the lantern and ballopticou is 
increasing. One excellent exercise of this nature was witnessed by the 
writer. Visits to factories and places illustrating geological forma- 
tions are features of the work in some schools. Cases were observed, 
however, where lessons were taught with no material other than that 
supplied by the text-book, although such was obtainable. (See page 
136.) 

Every building should have a central school museum illustrative 
of geography work and class collections should be made each 
school year. Portable lanterns or ballopticons and, if possible', 
motion picture machines adapted to school use should be supplied 
for each building. 

The Teaching of History. 

The general nature of the teaching of history observed was 
similar to that of geography. Not so good illustrative material was 
found in the class-rooms, but the use of supplementary texts did much 
to brighten the recitations. On the whole, the best examples of pupil 
recitation were observed in this subject. 

The extensive use of projection apparatus would do much to short 
circuit the history course and make it more interesting and 
effective. 

The Teaching of Arithmetic. 

The work in arithmetic was good, but could be improved by the 
use of more illustrative material and its co-ordination, in upper grades, 
with manual training and domestic arts. In one school, arithmetic was 
being taught in a class grocery store. 

Physical Exercises. 

The physical exercises observed were such as to develop grace 
and poise. The extensive use of victrolas in physical drill is particu- 
larly commendable. Greater vigor in the upper grades is desirable — 
particularly for boys. 

The provision of gymnasia, equipped playgrounds, and shower- 
baths, will make this possible. 

29 



Civics. 

The lessons in Civics observed were good ; but the best work in 
citizenship in Akron is being done in the pupils' organizations. 

"When all school buildings are equipped for community center 
work and club-rooms for students are available, still better work 
will be possible. The preparation of a course on " Akron," cover- 
ing the local geography, history, industry, commerce, church life 
and social life, and motivated by frequent studies of local environ- 
ment on the spot, is suggested. 

The Teaching of Music. 

Nothing but commendation could be given to the teaching of 
music as observed in the Akron schools. The comparatively extensive 
equipment of pianos and victrolas makes possible valuable work in 
musical appreciation. The need of more supervisory assistance was, 
however, apparent. 

The Teaching of Drawing and Art. 

The teaching of drawing and art observed in the elementary 
schools of Akron is of a high order. The course is well conceived and 
followed out, and is being developed rapidly. 

This work can be greatly strengthened when full provision is 
made for manual training and domestic art. The record of the 
High Schools is sufficient to prove this. The writer wishes that it 
were possible in the limits of this report to describe the art work 
in the High Schools and its co-ordination with domestic art 
subjects. 

The Work in Written and Oral Language. 

A great deal of the work in written and oral language observed 
was good. Oral expression instruction in the lower grades was par- 
ticularly effective. 

The writer believes that greater interest could be given to com- 
position if the emphasis were put not on choosing subjects inter- 
esting to children, but on leaving the initiative to the children, 
after supplying them with a school environment as rich as possible. 

Spelling Lessons. 

The technique of spelling drill observed was beyond criticism. 
One excellent study-recitation was observed where the teacher "moti- 
vated" the work and treated the subject from the "functional" stand- 
point. Every lesson is supposed to be a spelling lesson. The impres- 
sion obtained by the writer was that the work av;is unnecessarily formal. 
The minimum spelling list used in Akron is an excellent feature. 

The writer believes that better results might be obtained if each 
spelling lesson were made a language lesson based on the words, 
these being taken not from spelling lists prepared by others hut 
by lists drawn by the teachers from the working vocabularies of 
the pupils. 

30 



Instruction in the High Schools. 

The general character of instruction in the High Schools is sim- 
ilar to that of the elementary schools. Still more developed work in 
the socialized recitation was possible. Very excellent exercises in Eng- 
lish, Modern Languages, Civics, Singing, and Domestic Arts were ob- 
served. It is to be hoped that the people of Akron realize the value of 
their investment in the High Schools and will provide for propor- 
tionately equal investments in their elementary schools. 

The Class-Room Technique of Teachers. 

The teachers of Akron are, on the Avhole, remarkably free from 
such errors in class-room technique as talkativeness, loud speaking, re- 
peating questions and answers, asking loading questions, etc. The 
class work of elementary teachers was particularly noteworthy in this 
respect. 

The Night Schools. 

Within their limitations, the night schools of Akron have been 
doing good work. 

It is recommended that night school instruction, day part-time in- 
struction and co-operative vocational courses, similar to those in 
operation in Pitchburg and Cincinnati, be developed to the highest 
degree possible and co-ordinated with one another and with the 
proposed work in community centers under the direction of a 
special assistant superintendent. 

Reorganizing of the Supervisory Force. 

The educational, administrative and supervisory officers of the 
Akron school system are greatly overloaded with work and responsi- 
bilities. This, together with the rapid growth of the schools has re- 
sulted in the supervision of school activities being carried on through 
regulations, examinations and methods of formal control rather than 
by co-operation as a result of consultations between the Superintend- 
ent, supervisors, principals and teachers. The system needs more 
assistant leadership and more points of view. A better balance be- 
tween the masculine and feminine forces needs to be established. With 
the introduction of manual training for boys and of Junior High 
Schools, the proportion of men on the staff would automatically in- 
crease. (For further discussion see page 173.) 

It is recommended that a supervisory force be built up on lines 
similar to the following : 

1. A Superintendent of Schools; 

2. A male Assistant Superintendent of Schools responsible to the 
Superintendent for the supervision of instruction in the gram- 
mar grades ; 

3. A female Assistant Superintendent responsible to the Super- 
intendent for the supervision of instruction in the primary 
grades; ^ , 

31 



4. A male Assistant Superintendent responsible to the Superin- 
tendent for the supervision of all special school activities and 
community center work ; 

5. An adequate staff of supervisors and special teachers of art 
work, domestic art, manual training and music. 

Educational Records. 

The educational records of Akron provide the basis necessary 
tor educational control. Years in advance of most cities. Akron estab- 
lished individual record cards for children. For years the Superin- 
tendent has made semi-annual studies of over-age and its causes, based 
on these records. 

It is recommended that at least once each year studies be made of 
retardation — or progress through the schools at a rate slower than 
normal — and its causes. It is further recommended that as a basis 
for follow-up work individual records of children, resident in Ak- 
ron, who leave school before completing the High School be kept 
until they reach the age of 20. This will be necessary for the high- 
est success of night schools, continuation courses, and co-operative 
courses. 

Promotions. 

The percentage of promotion in Akron schools is high, vary- 
ing from 89% to 96% in the different schools. Rather unusual facil- 
ities for individual instruction of children are provided in Akron (see 
page 198). As classes are cut down in size, more facilities are provided 
lor individual instruction and promotion by subject becomes the rule, 
this percentage will still further increase. The schools of Akron are 
greatly handicapped by the rapid growth of the city and the migratory 
school population. About 44% of the present school population started 
school elsewhere. 

Retardation and Over-age. 

The standards for measuring retardation and over-age in Akron 
have always been high. In applying these standards in this study it 
became apparent that, of the children whose whole school records were 
in the hands of the teachers, 37.6% were over-age and 33.23' , were 
retarded. A considerable part of the over-age was due to late entrance. 
The figure for retardation is therefore more significant. The writer 
believes that, considering the unique disadvantages under which Akron 
schools labor, as pointed out above, the record with regard to the rate 
of progress through the schools is excellent. (For a discussion of pro- 
motions throughout the year, see page 182.) 

The record can be improved by 

a — Cutting down the size of classes ; 

b — Classifying pupils more finely as to ability; 
• c — Providing more frequent promotion periods; 

d — Promotion, by subjects, as far as possible. 

32 



Dropping- Out of School. 

During the first half of the academic year, 103 children dropped 
out of school before completing the school course. It is probable that 
during the year 300 or 400 are thus eliminated. Some statistics seem 
to indicate that the proportion is much larger. It is probably true that 
not over 20% who enter school in Akron graduate from the High 
School. This is extremely high when compared with the facts for the 
country as a whole. (See page 197.) It is a serious community loss 
when a child leaves school without completing the elementary school 
course. 

It is recommended that all over-age children — who are particu- 
larly liable to drop out of school — be given pre-vocational instruc- 
tion after reaching the age of twelve, irrespective of what grades 
they may be in. This will involve the provision of manual train- 
ing, etc., for every complete elementary school in the city. It is 
further recommended that an intensive study of elimination, its 
causes and amount, be conducted in the Akron schools. 

Medical Inspection. 

The medical inspection of children in Akron schools now admin- 
istered by the Board of Health is good, and improving. The facilities 
provided are, on the whole, satisfactory. The open-air classes — con- 
ducted by the Board of Education — are thoroughly well organized. The 
work with sub-normal and retarded children is on a particularly good 
basis, as the Board of Health provides a specialist in feeble-mindedness, 
and as the school principals are experienced in giving the Binet-Simon 
tests. 

Working Day of Principals and Teachers. 

The average working school day of principals in Akron is at 
least 7.9 hours long and that of the teachers, 7.8 hours long. No 
"slackers" were observed during the class-room inspection. 

Teachers' Training. 

The teachers of Akron are exceptionally well trained. Of 576 
teachers listed, all but 10 were High School graduates, all had High 
School training of which only 2 had less than three years. Fifteen 
teachers had four years professional training ; 12, three years ; 280, two 
years; 115, one year; 29, less than one year; and 125, none. Of the last 
mentioned, 64 were High School principals or teachers. Fourteen per 
cent of the teachers now on the staff were trained in Akron. One 
hundred and fifteen have had at least some training in colleges or 
universities. 

The Salary Schedule. 

The salary schedule of the Akron schools is such as to subject 
the system to the competition of neighboring and larger systems for the 
best teachers. The rate of pay in a city must depend largely on the 
wage necessary to support teachers at a suitable standard of living. 

33 



Prices have so increased and Akron has grown so rapidly that a scien- 
tific schedule cannot be drafted without a thorough local inquiry sim- 
ilar to the one just completed in Evanston by Acting Superintendent 
Farmer and a committee of teachers. 

It is recommended that a joint committee from the Board of Edu- 
cation, the Superintendent, the principals, teachers and various 
citizen organizations, be formed to make the necessary studies and 
formulate a tentative schedule of salaries. 

Incompleteness of School Equipment and its Relation to Community 
Center Work. 

Within the period of their use, the various school plants are 
used intensively. With the exception of the High Schools and an ele- 
mentary school, none are equipped for intensive use outside of regular 
school hours. The absence of this equipment lessens the efficiency of 
instruction in the regular academic school subjects. 

Both for the use of regular day pupils and for community uses 

after school hours, on holidays, and in vacation, every large school 

building in Akron should have : 

a — An auditorium ; 

b — -An equipped playground ; 

c — A gymnasium ; 

d — Shower baths ; 

e — A swimming pool ; 

f — Rooms and equipment for pre-vocational and vocational in- 
struction ; 

g — Several rooms proAdded with movable furniture for the use of 
club-rooms. 

All school-buildings so equipped should, wherever there is suffi- 
cient demand, be used for community centers, where citizens could 
meet to pursue common interests in organizations formed by 
themselves. 

The following is a suggestion as to type of organization : 



34 



People 

of 

yAkron 



Boar & of £:c/uc of/on 

A/Ve members 

efecfecf of /a /-ye 





Boarcf of 
•Su/zerv/^,10/7 
(•Super/nfeficfenf, 
CAwmon ) 



OfSpecio/ 
\3uhjecf3 



/.me of A/o/oo/nfment oncf Confro/ ■ 

3<s/3e/-r/3ory /? e/of/on 

Co-o/oez-o/fre — = 




Contfacfs 
Dtvi 3i o 




O'WS/on 






Community Center Work in Relation to School Reporting. 

As is fully set forth on page 224, some schools have done much 
to establish relations with their constituencies. An enlarged com- 
munity center program will secure for all schools the sympathy and 
respect, based on knowledge and comradeship in worth-while activ- 
ities, which is so necessary for the highest success of the schools. This 
constitutes the highest type of school reporting — every citizen his own 
reporter. 



35 



PART A 

THE RAISING AND ADMINISTRATION 
OF SCHOOL FUNDS 

A DESCRIPTION OF METHODS WITH CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISMS 
AND SUGGESTIONS 

The question of prime importance with regard to the schools is not 
"How much do they cost?" but "What is their product?" Inasmuch, 
however, as the methods of raising, expending and administering 
school funds have a direct bearing on the school product and as, under 
existing conditions, large expenditures are necessary before any sort 
of school is possible, the financial and business administration of the 
schools is considered first. This will be treated under three main heads : 

I. General Financial Facts 
II. Financial Methods 
III. Business Administration 

I. GENERAL FINANCIAL FACTS 

1. Sources of School Funds. 

The Akron Board of Education derives its funds applicable to oper- 
ating expenses from taxation, state funds and various miscellaneous 
sources. Bond issues provide the funds for all, or practically all, cap- 
ital outlay — new buildings, school sites, etc. Before 1913, some capital 
funds were raised by taxation, but the restrictions imposed by the State 
tax laws have since made this impossible. This is felt to be desirable 
in an undertaking not carried on for profit. The payment of at least 
a considerable part of the Board's capital obligations out of current 
funds would be in the line of conservative financing. During the past 
ten years the Board of Education has issued bonds to the amount of 
$1,707,000 — $875,000 of which was authorized by public vote. (See page 
66 repayment of borrowed funds.) 

As in the case of the other cities of Ohio, the Akron School System 
has no true annual budget on the basis of estimated available revenue 
and estimated expenditures for one year. Inasmuch as the tax year 
runs from March to March and the school year from September to 
September, the revenue year does not correspond to the expenditure 
year, nor the supply of cash with the needs for cash. Owing to this 
overlapping, the school budget, if it may be so called, is in reality the 
estimated net cost of the twelve-month school year plus the estimated 
cost of the next six months — at the end of which an instalment of taxes 
will be due — minus the cash balance on hand. Largely on account of 
budget confusion, an inordinate amount of time was consumed in 
getting at the financial facts for this study. The budget, at present, 
can be of little value for detailed financial control or other administra- 
tive purposes. 

36 



It is recommended that concerted action, in co-operation with the 
other cities of the State, through the various Boards of Education, 
Chambers of Commerce and other citizen agencies, be taken at once to 
secure State legislation to bring the tax year into conformity with the 
school financial year. 

It is unnecessary to discuss here the method of distributing the 
funds received from the State or the nature of the various miscel- 
laneous revenues. 

2. Increase of Current Revenue and Funds Applicable to Capital Out- 
lay. 

Revenue from taxation exceeds all other forms. During the past 
ten years taxes have furnished 88.6% of all revenues and at present 
amount to over $600,000 per year. State funds have contributed 7.7% 
and miscellaneous revenues have amounted to 3.7% of the total cur- 
rent revenue from the decade. Following is Table I, illustrated by 
graphic charts : 



TABLE I. 



COMPARATIVE TOTAL RECEIPTS 
For the ten years 1906-1907 to 1915-1916, Inclusive. 



Total Revenue Receipts 










Applicable to 






Miscellaneous 




Year 


Current Expense 


Taxes 


State Funds 


Sources 


Bond Sales 


1906-7 


$ 397,498.22 


$ 356,859.54 


$ 34,245.25 


$ 6,393.43 


$ 50,114.00 


1907-8 


262,395.85 


226,298.91 


27,128.52 


8,968.42 


None 


1908-9 


320,990.76 


278,280.88 


26,845.99 


15,863.89 


65,396.35 


1909-10 


329,292.95 


284,486.10 


29,124.54 


15,682.31 


200,000.00 


1910-11 


422,054.05 


381,390.96 


31,544.60 


9,118.49 


55,019.40 


1911-12 


401,918.12 


356,129.04 


34,309.84 


11,479.24 


63,447.00 


1912-13 


514,046.19 


454,802.23 


37,213.23 


22,030.73 


485,244.90 


1913-14 


540,214.74 


480,790.79 


40,068.54 


19,335.41 


212,165.67 


1914-15 


623,160.27 


560,459.14 


42,632.54 


20,068.59 


34,867.94 


1915-16 


692,339.28 


612,731.78 


42,879.64 


36,727.86 


512,170.70 




$4,503,910.43 


$3,992,229.37 


$345,992.69 


$165,688.37 


$1,678,425.96 



37 



Receipts from Taxation from 1906-7 to 1915-16. 



62 S, COO 






















too, COO 






S 7-5,000 








5SO, OOO 






S2 5 y OOO 








SOO, OOO 








4-7 S, OOO 










4- SO, OOO 












4-2S,000 












•4-00, ooo 
















375", OOO 










3 50,000 








SZSjOOO 


















500,000 




















LIS ,000 












£.50, ooo 


• 




















B- MS, OCO 
























a.0Oj ooo 






















f 75, OOO 






















/50 / o oo 






















1 k,S~,0OO 






















/oo,ooo 






















7S, OCO 






















50, OOO 






















£5", ooo 























1906-7 7-8 8-9 9-/0 /O-ll //-/2 /£-/3 /3"/<<- 14-15 

38 



/S-/6 



Receipts from Bond Sales from 1906-7 to 1915-16. 



PfS 0,000 



So 0,000 



+50, OOO 



4-0O, OOO 



350,000 



300, OOO 



2. SO, OOO 



BOO , OOO 



I SO, OOO 



100, OOO 



So, OOO 



/906-7 7-8 6-9 9-/o lo-ll li-M iz-li i$-i+ H-tS 'S-fe 



Table II, which follows, indicates that in six years the total current 
revenue has increased 77.6%, but that the portion applicable to interest 
and the repayment of debt has increased 85.9%. This is a serious con- 
dition. The fact that the building fund has increased 521%, and that 
it has, since 1913, consisted entirely of borrowed funds indicates that 
the financial situation is bound to become still more serious. On page 
67 it is made clear that debt repayments have been postponed in many 

39 



cases, so that the percentage of the total revenue applicable to debt 
charges is not as large as it should have been in the interests of safe 
financing. This is indirectly another result of the Smith One Per Cent 
Law and, if allowed to persist, can result only in bankruptcy. 

These facts should have been currently reported to the taxpayers in 
such persistent and striking ways as to command attention. Too early 
a beginning cannot be made on such a campaign as a basis for a state- 
wide agitation for bare justice to the cities of the State which are 
badly in need of a large measure of autonomy in local taxation. If 
the people are willing and able to tax themselves for schools and munici- 
pal services, why should the State object? To curtail powers of taxa- 
tion and leave, undiminished, the power of borrowing invites financial 
disaster. To curtail both invites educational disaster. The best cur- 
tailment of either is provided by the common sense of the people who 
pay the bills. Paying the bills will produce the necessary common 
sense if it does not already exist. 

TABLE II. 
CLASSIFIED FUND RECEIPTS 

For the six years 1910-1911 to 1915-1916, Inclusive. 

APPLICABLE 
TO 
APPLICABLE TO CURRENT EXPENSE PERMANENT 
Total Current Contingent Bonds and OUTLAY 

Year Receipts Tuition Fund Fund Interest* Building Fund 

1910-11 $ 396,647.48 $ 254,022.66 $ 79,040.16 $ 63,584.66 $ 80,426.07 

1911-12 390,224.35 265.389.02 95,007.69 29,827.64 85,140.77 

1912-13 498,637.23 290,603.04 156,615.06 51,419.13 501,653.86 

1913-14 541,225.01 332,723.74 134,327.22 74,174.05 211,155.47 

iyi4-15 658,028.21 416,271.96 168,356.73 73,399.52 None 

1915-16 704,369.50 420,519.13 165,5 94.86 118,255.51 500,176.53 

$3,189,131.78 $1,979,529.55 $798,941.72 $410,660.51 $1,378,552.70 
* Includes premiums from sale of bonds. 

3. How School Revenues are Limited by State Legislation. 

No attempt will be made here to explain the Smith One Per Cent 
Law. This should be superfluous in any city in the State now groan- 
ing under its artificial restrictions. Let it suffice to state that the Law 
places a limit of 5 mills upon all taxes for school purposes raised dur- 
ing any fiscal year unless the people, by special election, authorize an 
additional levy. In no case, however, can the combined budgets of the 
various corporations concerned exceed 15 mills, so that neither the 
city nor the schools may receive the full benefit of the theoretical 
maximum available for either. This, of course, is liable to cause and, 
in many places, actually does cause competition for funds between 
cities and boards of education — tin exceedingly undesirable state of 
affairs. 

During the five years previous to 1916-1917 the schools received 
$590,309.04 less than the theoretical maximum, and, if 1916-1917 be 
included, the theoretical deficiency would amount to $764,874.64. 

Table III which follows gives a summary of the facts : 

40 



TABLE III. 
ACTUAL AND MAXIMUM RECEIPTS FROM TAXATION.* 



Year 


Actual 


Tax Rate 
Maximum 


Difference 


Total School Duplicate 


Difference 


1911-12 
1912-13 
1913-14 


4.4 Mills 
4.9 Mills 
4.6 Mills 


5.0 Mills 
5.8 Mills 
5.8 Mills 


0.6 Mills 
0.9 Mills 
1.2 Mills 


$ 81,795.250.00 

94,122,280.00 

105,828,780.00 


$ 49,077.15 

84,710.15 

126,994.54 


1914-15 
1915-16 


4.8 Mills 
4.6 Mills 


6.0 Mills 
6.0 Mills 


1.2 Mills 
1.4 Mills 


119,118,990.00 
133,274,580.00 


142,942.79 
186,584.41 



Theoretical deficiency in tax receipts $590,309.04 

* For 1916-1917 the difference is 1.2 *nills, equivalent to $174,565.60 in taxes. 

According to the provisions of the State law, State funds will in- 
crease with the city's growth. Miscellaneous receipts probably will 
also. But these together form a small part of the revenue. 

There need be no fear apparently as to the sufficiency of bond 
issues as the Board may issue bonds each year to an amount equal to 
two mills on the school duplicate and the Akron public seems favorable 
to necessary school extension. 

4. How School Revenues and Capital Funds are Spent. 

As in most cities, the classification of school expenses in the Akron 
schools is entirely inadequate for administrative purposes. Moreover, 
the actual distribution has varied from year to year. Hence it is 
absolutely impossible to give here any data as to the cost of school 
functions and only approximately correct data of general functions 
and objects of expenditure. The figures in Table IV which follows 
indicate that salaries and wages account for 63.2% of the current 
expenses; maintenance of plant, for 24.2%; and debt charges for 
12.6%, for a ten-year period. The capital expenditures average $167,- 
816.50. 

Thus, Salaries of Administration have increased 167% ; Elementary 
School Salaries, 116',; Cost of Maintenance and Plant, 386%; Debt 
Charges, 121%. The significant fact here is that educational salaries 
have not kept pace with physical costs. Brains should not be allowed 
to suffer in comparison with bricks and mortar and their upkeep. 



41 



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co"* 


CO* 


q s < 


CO 


CO 


oo 


o 


01 


CM 


CM 


CM 


CO 


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J- K- 00 ffl 

<U CO l~ GO 

>i © © O 

CS CS Ci 



cm co ^ m cc 



cm co ■<# in 
cs cs cs os | 



42 



Below is a graph showing the percentage increases in these costs 
compared with percentage increase in average attendance. 




JfOi / 7-8 



y-/o io-ti 



II l£ IZ-13 13- tf I4--I5 



i$-/6 



Average daily attendance 
Administrative salaries 
Elementary Teachers' salaries. 
High School Teachers' salaries 

43 



Table V which follows shows the variation in the disbursements from 
the various funds for a period of six years. The two charts illustrate 
the main points. 



TABLE V. 



CLASSIFIED FUND DISBURSEMENTS 
For the six years 1910-1911 to 1915-1916, Inclusive. 



Year 


Total 

Disbursements 

on Current 

Account 


T 


FOR CURRENT EXPENSES 

Contingent Bonds and 
uition Fund Fund Interest 


FOR 
PERMANENT 

OUTLAY 
Building Fund 


1910-11 


$ 326,814.63 


$ 


213,618.80 


$ 73,801.23 


$ 39,394.60 


$ 176,833.71 


1911-12 


352,702.04 




232,568.91 


99,038.96 


21,094.17 


104,270.52 


1912-13 


444,295.86 




271,967.93 


121,600.43 


50,727.50 


312,549.23 


1913-14 


521,444.46 




311,958.36 


142,366.10 


67,12§.00 


379,582.14 


1914-15 


634,713.20 




381,398.85 


164,768.45 


88,545.90 


47,275.20 


1915-16 


651,919.97 




415,598.57 


136,166.40 


100,155.00 


332,748.02 




$2,931,890.16 


$1,827,111.42 


$737,741.57 


$367,037.17 


$1,353,258.82 



44 



Disbursements on Current Account from 1910-11 to 1915-16. 
* 700,000 



650,000 



bOO.OOO 



ssqooo 



.500,000 



4-S0,000 



4-00, OOO 



3 50, OOO 



J 00,000 



2. 50,000 



2 00,000 



150,000 



too, OOO 



SO, OOO 



if/0-// //-/& /Z-/3 

45 



A3 -A* /4--1S /S-/0 



Disbursements from Building Fund 
from 1910-11 to 1915-16. 



9 -4*50,000 
'4-2-5,000 
-4-00,000 
37S,000 
SSOjOOO 
32S,0O0 
J 00,000 
27S,000 
250,000 
225,000 
2.00,000 
1 75,000 
/S0,OOO 
/2S,000 

/ 00,000 

7S t OOO 
50,000 
£5,000 



19/0 /t 11-12. IZ-IS 13-14 I4--IS IS-16 



The cost per pupil in average daily attendance for the six years 
1911-1912 to 1915-1916 based on the figures in Table V and Table VI 
(below) was $39.80. The per pupil cost for 1915-1916 was $42.70. The 
average cost for 50 cities, each having over 100,000 population, accord- 
ing to the 1917 report of the United States Commissioner of Education, 
was $49.36. Taking into consideration the proximity of Akron to a 
much larger center of population with which there is more or less 
competition for teachers, direct or indirect, Akron costs are certainly 
moderate. 



46 



TABLE VI. 

Average 
Year Attendance 

1916-1917 (* year) 19,090 

1915-1916 15,268 

1914-1915 14,176 

1913-1914 '. 13,004 

1912-1913 11,640 

1911-1912 10,269 

1910-1911 9,266 

1909-1910 8,189 

1908-1909 8,163 

1907-1908 7,519 

1906-1907 7,401 

5. Condition of School Funds. 

As one might expect from the foregoing description, the condition 
of at least some of the four legal funds — tuition, for the payment of 
teachers' salaries; contingent, for the payment of other operating 
expenses ; bond and interest, for taking care of debt requirements ; 
building, the capital fund — must be approaching an undesirable con- 
dition. This is particularly true of the tuition and the contingent 
funds. Interest and instalments must be provided for, although, as 
indicated above and later, repayments of capital have in many cases 
been postponed beyond the date of issue of the bonds concerned, so 
that indebtedness cannot but increase faster than the rate of repay- 
ment. If this fund were scientifically sound, the tuition and contingent 
funds would be in a worse condition than they are. As before stated, 
the building fund is now raised entirely by borrowing and, as the 
two-mill limit of the law seems to be ample, there is no present likeli- 
hood of embarrassment here unless the population increases faster 
than the duplicate or citizens change their attitude toward school ex- 
penditures. 

Tables VII-A to VII-D and Table VIII indicate that the balances in 
the four funds have slightly but steadily increased each year. The 
balance in the building fund, of course, simply means that the 
buildings for which the bonds were issued were not constructed. In the 
most important fund, however — the tuition fund — the annual surplus 
has declined from over $40,000 in 1910-1911 to less than $5,000 in 
1915-1916. This is a very narrow margin. Should the receipts and 
disbursements for the year 1916-1917 agree with the estimates pre- 
pared by the School Clerk, there will be a deficit in this fund on opera- 
tion account, for the year, of over $50,000, reducing the accumulated 
balance by that amount. In a similar way, if the official estimates hold 
good, the August, 1916, balance in the contingent fund of over $95,000 
will be reduced to about $55,000, showing a net deficit for the year of 
$40,000. The bond and interest fund alone, of the three current ex- 
pense funds, shows an increased balance of about $18,000. The com- 
bined balances will have been reduced from $403,018.98 on August 31, 
1916, to $327,758.08 on August 31, 1917. There would be an actual 
cash deficiency — as there will be an actual operating deficit of $75,- 
000 — if the year had not started with a balance. In spite of the rigid 

47 



curtailment of expenditures of the Board, even in directions seriously 
affecting the efficiency of the schools, the State tax restrictions are 
getting in their deadly work and, if present conditions continue, will 
produce an impossible situation. 



TABLE VII-A. 



STATUS OF TUITION FUND 
For the six years 1910-1911 to 1915-1916, Inclusive. 





Re 


:ceipts During 


Expenditures During 


Surplus of Receipts 


Balance at 


Year 




the Year 


the Year 


over Disbursements 


End of Year 


1910-11 


$ 


254,022.66 


$ 213,618.80 


$ 40,403.86 


$138,215.90* 


1911-12 




265,389.02 


232,568.91 


32,820.11 


171,036.01 


1912-13 




290,603.04 


271,967.93 


18,635.11 


189,671.12 


1913-14 




332,723.74 


311,958.36 


20,765.38 


210,436.50 


1914-15 




416,271.96 


381,398.85 


34,873.11 


245,309.61 


1915-16 




420,519.13 


415,598.57 


4,920.56 


250,230.17 




$1,979,529.55 


$1,827,111.42 


$152,418.13 





Includes balance from 1909-10 of $97,812.04. 

STATUS OF CONTINGENT FUND 
For the six years 1910-1911 to 1915-1916, Inclusive. 



TABLE VII-B. 





Receipts During 


Expenditures During 


Surplus of Receipts 


Balance at 


Year 


the Year 


the Year 


over Disbursements 


End of Year 


1910-11 


$ 79,040.16 


$ 73,801.23 


$ 5,238.93 


$39,091.65* 


1911-12 


95,007.69 


99,038.96 


4,031.27x 


35,060.38 


1912-13 


156,615.06 


121,600.43 


35,014.63 


70,075.01 


1913-14 


134,327.22 


142,366.10 


8,038.88x 


62,036.13 


1914-15 


168,356.73 


164,768.45 


3,588.28 


65,624.41 


1915-16 


165,594.86 


136,166.40 


29,428.46 


95,052.87 



$798,941.72 $737,741.57 

* Includes balance from 1909-10 of $33,852.72. 
x Deficit. 



$61,200.15 



TABLE VII-C. 



STATUS OF BONDS AND INTEREST FUND 
For the six years 1910-1911 to 1915-1916, Inclusive. 





Receipts During 


Expenditures During 


Surplus of Receipts 


Balance at 


Year 


the Year 


the Year 


over Disbursements 


End of Year 


1910-11 


$ 63,584.66 


$ 39,394.60 


$24,190.06 


$38,302.66* 


1911-12 


29,827.64 


21,094.17 


8,733.47 


47,036.13 


1912-13 


51,419.13 


50,727.50 


691.63 


47,727.76 


1913-14 


74,174.05 


67,120.00 


7,054.05 


54,781.81 


1914-15 


73,399.52 


88,545.90 


15,146.38x 


39,635.43 


1915-16 


118,255.51 


100,155.00 


18,100.51 


57,735.94 




$410,660.51 


$367,037.17 


$43,623.34 





* Includes balance from 1909-10 of $14,112.60. 
x Deficit. 



48 



TABLE VII-D. 



STATUS OF BUILDING FUND 
For the six years 1910-1911 to 1915-1916, Inclusive. 



Year 


R, 


jceipts During 
the Year 


Expenditures During 
the Year 


Surplus of Receipts 
over Disbursements 


Balance at 
End of Year 


1910-11 


$ 


80,426.07 


$ 176,833.71 


$ 96,407.64x 


$ 45,727.06* 


1911-12 




85,140.77 


104,270.52 


19,129.75x 


26,597.31 


1912-13 




501,653.86 


312,549.23 


189,104.63 


215,701.94 


1913-14 




211,155.47 


379,582.14 


168,426.67x 


47,275.20 


1914-15 




None 


47,275.20 


47,275.20x 


None 


1915-16 




500,176.53 


332,748.02 


167,428.51 


167,428.51 




$1,378,552.70 


$1,353,258.82 


$ 25,293.88 





* Includes balance from 1909-10 of $142,134.70. 
x Deficit. 



TABLE Vni. 
ESTIMATE OF UNEXPENDED BALANCES FOR 1916-1917. 
(Compiled from Clerk's figures) 

Distribution by Funds 

Bond and 
ITEM TOTAL Tuition Contingent Interest 

Balance, August 31st, 1916 $ 403,018.98 $250,230.17 $ 95,052.87 $ 57,735.94 

Eeceipts 1916-1917 785,423.35 481,756.70 166,598.47 137,068.18 

Available 1916-1917 1,188,442.33 731,986.87 261,651.34 194,804.12 

Disbursements 860,684.25 535,116.00 206,995.75 118,572.50 

Balance, August 31st, 1917 $ 327,758.08 $196,870.87 $ 54,655.59 $ 76,231.62 



The chart which follows has been prepared to illustrate this situa- 
tion. On this chart the shaded portions represent disbursements from 
advance credits. It is plain that these disbursements have been in- 
creasing both in frequency and amounts, two advances being required 
both in 1915-1916 and in 1916-1917 as against one advance in each of 
the four previous years. Such a practice can have but one result. The 
school authorities estimate that the schools by next January will be 
running over two months behind their requirements. 



49 



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51 



6. School Finances and the Building" Program. 

Every time a school is built, two things happen : 

a — The debt charges are added to ; 

b — Expenses for salaries and upkeep increase. 
Both of these come out of the current revenue. Capital expenditure 
out of borrowed money cannot be indulged in without increasing taxa- 
tion. And taxation, under the Smith One Per Cent Law, cannot be 
greatly increased even by the consent of the people. 

The present building program of the Board calls for an expendi- 
ture of $875,000 during the next three years. As the balance in the 
building fund, including all authorized bond issues, is $531,098.20, a 
supplementary bond issue of over $440,000 will be required in the near 
future. 

An additional amount of $200,000 will be required to take care of 
structural changes in existing schools, as, for example, in the Perkins, 
Howe, Kent and Spicer schools. If it is decided that these or parts of 
these should be completely rebuilt the sum required will be much larger. 
The old Perkins School certainly should be rebuilt as it is not only a 
disgrace to the community but a menace to safety. 

TABLE IX. 

Estimate of Building Program. 
Total .....$875,000.00 

1. Manchester Road $125,000.00 

2. Firestone Park 200,000.00 

3. Jennings Addition 150,000.00 

4. Martha Avenue 150,000.00 

5. Goodyear Heights 125,000.00 

6. Merriman Road 125,000.00 

Note : The above outline does not take into account a large number of structural alterations 
and replacements which investigation has shown to be desirable. 

It is impossible to discuss a building program apart from educational 
policies. The Akron Board's program is based on a continuation of 
the present form of educational administration in all essentials, with 
the addition of expensive though necessary plant and equipment for 
manual training, domestic arts, physical training, and auditorium work, 
which have been so long inadequately provided for in the elementary 
schools of Akron. 

The question arises : Is all this new construction necessary in view 
of recent developments, such as the various two-platoon systems? The 
writer, on the basis of his experience, is absolutely and heartily in 
favor of all the special subjects and plant and equipment called for by 
any platoon arrangement, but is opposed just as firmly to any system 
which necessitates specialization by teachers or departmentalization 
below the High School, except in the case of a very few special subjects, 
and then only in the upper grades. His reasons for this are fully stated 

52 



on pages 159 and 160. In fact, he believes that departmentaliza- 
tion should be only partial in the first year of the High School where 
large groups of related subjects should be taught by the same teacher 
to the same children. This is in the interests of a broad, well co- 
ordinated basis for High School work. This does not mean that no 
scheme can be devised for the more economical use of school plant, 
bearing in mind the fact that more important than occupying all the 
school space for the greatest possible part of each day is the occupying 
of all the child's interests for the greatest time consistent with the 
laws of his physical and mental development. Complete development 
of children is more important than complete use of plant. To place 
the emphasis on the second is bound to jeopardize the first. Place 
the child first and then devise ways and means for the fullest use of 
the investment in physical plant for the highest satisfaction of the 
child's needs. 

The extension of the period during daylight hours when the school 
buildings and playgrounds are open, the provision of rooms with cer- 
tain special equipment, and the equipment of gymnasia, can greatly in- 
crease the use of school plant without giving the individual teacher 
any more work, without increasing the number of school hours per 
child, and without departmentalizing the elementary schools. As our 
notions as to the requirements of school discipline become modified in 
the direction of auto-discipline, the lessening of class-room nervous 
strain will become noticeable, and both teachers and pupils will be 
able to work more hours in the day and more days in the year with an 
increase — not a decrease — in the joy of life and consequently of effi- 
ciency. 

Outlined below is a possible organization of a school consisting of 
three regular class-rooms and one special class-room. It provides for 
six teachers, each working five hours a day, and a school plant working 
eight hours a day (two rooms, seven hours). The special class-room 
might be equipped for art and elementary manual training work for 
all grades, for nature study, history and geography for all grades, or 
for a small gymnasium. For advanced manual training and domestic 
arts the children might go to a special center, such as would be pro- 
vided by a large specialized elementary school. Or, again, Grades VII 
and VIII might be omitted from this school and sent to a central school 
for upper grades, such as a Junior High School which takes Grades 
VII, VIII and IX. In any event, four class-rooms would provide six 
classes with everything essential and more than they receive under 
usual existing conditions. 



53 



A Four-Room School on a Shift Plan 
(Letters Represent Classes) 

Three Regular Classrooms One Spec la/ 

Room 



Hours 



6- 9 



9-IO 



10-// 



II- J2 



/2-J 



/-2 



2-3 



&4- 



6 teachers for 5 hours each=30 teacher hours 

6 classes at 5 hours each=30 class hours 

4 class-rooms at an average of 7* hours each— 30 class-room hours 




54 



It will be noticed : 

1. That the classes shift somewhat, but that the teachers shift with 
them ; 

2. That four of the classes are in a "home" room four hours out of 
five, and the other two for three hours out of five ; 

3. That five out of the six classes end the day in the room where they 
began ; 

4. Each class has at least one hour per day in the special room ; 

5. Two classes begin at eight, have one hour intermission, and get 
through at two o'clock (leaving three hours at least for the play- 
ground) ; two classes begin at eight, have two hours intermission 
and get through at three o'clock; and two classes begin at ten 
o'clock, have one hour intermission, and get through at four 
o'clock. If classes 5 or 6 were a kindergarten it would not need 
to begin until ten o 'clock and the children would not need to come 
back in the afternoon, leaving two rooms for the instruction by 
kindergarten teachers of special children in the lower grades ; 

6. By enlarging the supposed building by multiples of four, the num- 
ber of special rooms could be increased so that the curriculum could 
be enriched without decreasing the relative number of children 

taken care of. 

This is not offered as an ideal arrangement but is presented in a 
schematic form without details in order to make the meaning clear. 
All sorts of modifications could be made by changing the time of open- 
ing one-half hour, by making the intermission uniformly one and a 
half hours long, etc. The details of such a scheme would have to be 
worked out by the authorities on the ground, in the view of all local 
conditions and modes of living. 

The diagram which follows indicates how 12 classes could be taken 
care of in six regular class-rooms, one special class-room and a gymna- 
sium large enough to accommodate three ordinary classes with a 
teacher each and leaving class-rooms vacant for several periods in the 
afternoon for the instruction of exceptional children. The letters in- 
dicate classes. 



55 



An Eight-Room School on a Shift Plan 
(Letters Represent Classes) 



ours 
8-7 


A 


J/ 


«r r?e 


9*4 


/or 
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C /ogs room s 

D E 






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It should be remembered that any such scheme disarranges, more or 
less, home time schedules, creates embarrassment when there are 
several children from one home, increases the expense of maintenance 
of plant and makes sanitation harder. All these things are true of 
the platoon plan. The question for the community to settle is whether 
they are prepared to put up with the inconveniences of some "shift" 
plan — which works no violence to the interests of the children — for 
the sake of the financial advantages. The writer believes that in the 
near future an experiment of this nature will be forced by circum- 
stances and that it should be undertaken at once before actual necessity 
requires it. It certainly is preferable to overcrowding and allows for 
improving instruction without any really serious inconveniences to the 
home. 

The writer believes also that capital expenditure on High School 
buildings might be reduced somewhat by the inclusion in them of a 

56 



greater number of rooms, smaller than the standard size, for the ac- 
commodation of small classes apt to be found in the Junior and Senior 
Years. 

The following schedules show, for two High Schools, at the last 
period in the morning, the distribution of pupils in the various class- 
rooms. It is obvious, of course, that not all the slack can be taken up, 
but it would seem that an intensive study by principals and teachers 
might effect considerable saving in space. 



First High School 



Class-room No. 
Regular 


No. of Pupils 
being taught 


No. of Pupils 
studying at seats 


No. of Sittings or 

places for pupils in 

the room 


1 





4 


48 


2 


25 


8 


47 


3 


24 


4 


47 


4 


23 





40 


5 





20 


44 


6 


25 


15 


48 


7 





14 


52 


8 


21 


8 


55 


11 


21 


14 


50 


12 


25 


9 


57 


25 


16 


8 


39 


26 





24 


40 


28 


22 


21 


43 


29 


14 


24 


40 


31 


18 


15 


42 


32 


19 


9 


48 


34 


28 


10 


41 


35 





5 


40 


38 





3 


45 


Special 
10 


22 





30 


13 








27 


14 


30 





30 


15 


17 





30 


18 


24 





30 


19 


20 





24 


20 


10 





27 


22 


20 





34 


24 


21 





25 


30 








38 


36 


17 





16 


42 


19 





.... 


43 


18 





•18 


44 


9 





35 



Second High School 



Class-room 
Regular 


No. of Pupils 
being taught 


No. of Pupils 
studying at seats 


No. of Sittings or 

places for pupils in 

the room 


1 


20 





35 


2 


12 


3 


42 


3 


20 


11 


46 


4 


19 





46 


5 


21 





48 


6 


17 


13 


41 


7 





14 


44 


8 


12 


22 


84 


9 


22 


12 


40 


10 


18 


15 


44 


11 


23 


7 


44 


12 


18 


2 


33 


13 


14 


4 


26 


14 


21 


20 


84 


15 





41 


84 


16 

Special 

1 

2 


22 

23 
5 


12 





42 

(Gym) 
30 


3 


19 





35 


4 


20 





30 


5 


25 





35 


6 


10 





15 


7 


28 





36 


8 


9 





18 


9 


11 





23 


10 


18 





42 


11 








32 


12 


20 





34 


13 


15 





20 


14 


5 





28 


15 








28 


16 


8 





30 



7. The Schools and the City Government as Competitors for Public 
Funds. 
Statements have been made that since the passage of the Smith Law 
the city has come off second best in its requests for funds. Table X 
which follows indicates the basis for this charge. 

TABLE X. 
COMPARISON OF TAXATION FACTORS BEFORE AND SINCE 
THE SMITH LAW. 







City T 


axes 


School 


Taxes 


Difference 


Year 




Kate 


% of Tola 


1 Rate 


% of Total 


Rate % of Total 


1906-7 


13.8 


mills 


47.9% 


9.0 mills 


31.2% 




1907-8 


13.8 


mills 


47.9 


9.0 mills 


31.2 




1908-9 


16.4 


mills 


50.0 


10.fi mills 


:^2.3 




1909-10 


14.344 


mills 


46.3 


10.4 mills 


33.6 




1910-11 


13.5 


mills 


42.2 


12.0 mills 


37.5 




Average 


14.4 


mills 


46.9% 


10.2 mills 


33.2% 


4.2 mills 13.7% 


1911-12 


5.5 


mills 


44.7% 


4.4 mills 


35.8% 




1912-13 


5.4 


mills 


43.6 


4.9 mills 


39.5 




1913-14 


5.4 


mills 


42.9 


4.6 mills 


36.5 




1914-15 


7.5 


mills 


51.4 


4.8 mills 


32.9 




1915-16 


7.0 


mills 


47.9 


4.6 mills 


31.5 




1916-17 


7.3 


mills 


47.4 


4.8 mills 


30.2 




Average 


6.35 


mills 


46.3% 


4.7 mills 


34.4% 


1.65 mills 11.9% 




Total Aver 


age Gain 


for School Taxes... 


...2.15 mills 1.8% 



58 



Per Cent of Total Taxation Going to the Schools, Before and Since 
Passage of Smith One Per Cent Law 



/906-7 7-9 8-9 9-10 lo-lt 
3efore Smith Law 



1 1 -It H-13 tS-14- M-IS 1 5-/6 I€-I7 
After Smith Low 



59 



This table would seem to indicate that the city has received a slightly 
less proportion of the public funds and the schools somewhat more. 
The city has suffered relatively to the extent of perhaps $265,000. It 
is doubtful whether this difference spread over a term of years could 
have affected materially the city's financial position. Moreover, the 
schools' percentage of the total allotment was the lowest in the decade, 
while the city's was exceeded in only four years. 

That requests for funds to meet the pressing needs of the schools have 
been frequently cut by the budget commissioners is shown in Table XL 
As the most important functions of any community, education and 
health control should not be allowed to suffer. If action with regard 
to the Smith Law — such as is recommended on page 21 — is actually 
taken, rivalry for funds between the Board and the city will automati- 
cally disappear. 









TABLE XI. 




CUTS IN BUDGET 


ESTIMATES. 




Year 


Total Budget 
Estimates 


Total Amount 
Allowed 


Difference 


1911-12 


$385,000.00 


$359,899.75 


$ 25,100.25 


1912-13 


440,000.00 


385,901.35t 


54,098.65 


1913-14 


534,217.56 


486,811.04 


47,406.52 


1914-15 


670,000.00* 


571,774.20 


98,225.80 


1915-16 


675,100.00* 


613,064.79 


62,035.21 


1916-17 


912,000.00* 


654,621.00 


257,379.00 


Total Difference 






$544,245.43 



* Does not include building fund estimates, the money for which was subsequently raised by 
bond issues. 

t Does not include extra credit allowed as result of special election. 



r.o 



Cuts in School Estimates from 1911-12 to 1916-17 



#300,000 



£.75,000 



2.50,000 



a 25,000 



£ OO, OOO 



irs,oco 



150,000 



/25,00c 



100,000 



75.000 



50,000 



25.000 



1911-12 H-13 I3-M- I+-I* ,S -' 6 i6 ~' 7 



61 



II. FINANCIAL METHODS. 

The chief topics of interest under this head are : 

1. Budget Procedure 

2. Bond Issues 

3. Financial Reports 

1. Budget Procedure. 

The initial difficulty in budget procedure, as already pointed out, 
is the overlapping of the tax year and the school year. Under present 
conditions of growth, it is practically impossible to estimate in June 
of one year what the requirements of the six-months period commenc- 
ing in September of the next year will be. See Table XII which fol- 
lows. This, taken in conjunction with the severe cuts to which school 
estimates have been subjected — often horizontal and without any care- 
ful consideration of readjustments between the funds — makes the 
problem of budget making a very difficult one. 

TABLE XII. 
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ESTIMATED REQUIREMENTS AND BUDGET 
REQUESTS 1911-1912 TO 1916-1917. 



Year 

1911-12 
1912-13 
1913-14 
1914-15 
1915-16 
1916-17 


Estimated 
Requirements 
(Fiscal Year) 

$348,376.50 
419,066.08 
587,619.41 
628,843.50 
684,185.91 
835,672.50 


Budget Request! 
(18 months) 

$385,000.00 
440,000.00 
534,217.56 
670,000.00* 
675,100.00* 
912,000.00* 


Difference 

$ 36,623.50 
20,933.92 
53,401.85} 
41,156.50 

9,085.911 
76,327.50 


Total Expi 


?ss of Requests over Estimates 


$112,553.66 



t These amounts, plus unexpended balance at end of year, were estimated to be necessary to 

finance the schools until March of the succeeding fiscal year. 
* Omitting building fund estimates. 
t Decrease. 

The second difficulty is the absence of all true operating accounts 
as all accounts are on a cash-receipts, cash-payments basis, not a reve- 
nue-expenditure basis. Receipts and revenues are not the same thing. 
One knows how much money has been taken in in a year or month, 
and how much has gone out in a year or month, but one does not know 
how much the annual and monthly revenue and expenses have been. 
That is, the Board keeps no true cost accounts and cannot, therefore, 
determine monthly or unit costs. Neither can there be any true de- 
tailed appropriation accounting, although fund ledgers must be kept. 
Thus the Board has not adequate data currently available throughout 
the year for administration purposes nor available toward the end of 
the year as a basis for budget estimates. Each year a complete analysis 
of the year's expenditures must be made as no accounts produce the 
results automatically. That is, the budget is based on memoranda 
prepared for the purpose and not on systematically organized accounts. 

62 



Taking all these hindrances together, it speaks well for the conserva- 
tive management of the school funds by the Board that it has been 
able to discharge all obligations when due with the exception of the 
refunding of a $33,000 bond issue in 1915. This has not been accom- 
plished, however, without material sacrifices affecting the efficiency of 
the schools, both educationally and from the standpoint of hygiene. 

2. Bond Issues. 

In the decade ending 1915-1916 the bonded indebtedness of the 
schools increased from $245,000 to $1,715,000. This represents 1.08% 
of the valuation. The city's debt represents 4.5% of the valuation. 
See Tables XIII and XIV and charts, which follow. 



COMPARATIVE BONDED INDEBTEDNESS 
1907 to 1916, Inclusive. 



Year 
1907 
1908 
1909 
1910 
1911 
1912 
1913 
1914 
1915 
1916 



Amount of Debt 

$ 245,000.00 

230.000.00 

280,000.00 

315,000.00 

500,000.00 

913,000.00 

1,025,000.00 

1,213,000.00 

1,208,000.00 

1.715.000.00 



Valuation* 

$ 25,694,650.00 

27,146,360.00 

27,632,200.00 

31,523,940.00 

81,795,250.00 

94,122,280.00 

105,828,780.00 

119,118,990.00 

i:;:;, 274,580.00 

145,471,330.00 



TABLE XIII. 



Percentage of 
Valuation 

0.95 

0.85 

1.01 

1.00 

0.61 

0.97 

0.96 

1.02 

0.91 

1.08 



Average Percentage of Indebtedness 0.94 

City valuation plus proportional assessment of Springfield, Portage, etc., January 29, 1917. 



RELATION OF DEBT CHARGES 



TABLE XIV. 
TO BONDED INDEBTEDNESS. 



Year 


Bonded 
Indebtedness 


Debt Charges 


Pi 

which 

are 

In 


srcentage* 
Debt Charges 
of Bonded 

debtedness 


1906-7 


$ 245,000.00 


$ 25,320.50 




10.3% 


1907-8 


230,000.00 


29,260.84 




12.7 


1908-9 


280,000.00 


31,587.25 




11.3 


1909-10 


315,000.00 


26,755.55 




8.5 


1910-11 


500,000.00 


39,394.50 




7.9 


1911-12 


913,000.00 


31,094.17 




3.4 


1912-13 


1,025,000.00 


50,727.50 




5.1 


1913-14 


1,213,000.00 


67,120.00 




5.5 


1914-15 


1,208,000.00 


93,605.20 




7.7 


1915-16 


1,715,000.00 


110,155.00 




6.4 


Increase in 
Ten Years 


$1,470,000.00 
600% 


$ 84,834.50 
335% 







Average ratio for 10 years: 7.9%. 



63 



Growth in Bonded Indebtedness from 1906-7 to 1915-16 



2,000,000 

i,9oqpoo 
i,8ocpoo 

I,70CPOO 
I, 600,000 
I, 500,000 
i (900,000 
1,300,000 

i,aoo,ooo 

I, too. ooo 
1.000,000 
900,000 
QOO.OOO 
700,000 

eoo,ooo 
s 00,000 

400,000 
300,000 

aoo.ooo 
too, ooo 



1906-7 7-6 6-9 9-10 tO-lt H-/£ li-li /$-/.* >4-l3 It-I* 



64 



Growth in Annual Debt Charges from 1906-7 to 1915-16 



/ao,ooo 



no poo 



100,000 



90,000 



00,000 



70,000 



to,ooo 



50,000 



4-0,000 



30,000 



£OfiOO 



10,000 



■7 /-H fl- 9 9~t0 10-11 ll-ti. IZ-t3 13-14- I4-15 /S-/6 



65 



School bonds have been issued under two sections of the General 
Code, 7629 and 7625 respectively, the former permitting boards of 
education to issue bonds up to the equivalent of a two-mill rate with- 
out popular vote, and the latter providing for bond issues after special 
authorization by the people. 

There seems to be some conflict as to the legal provisions at present 
governing the issue of bonds by boards of education in Ohio, our in- 
formation being that the City Solicitor recently advised the Board 
against the issuing of certain bonds although professional bond buyers 
took up the issue without question. If there he any such conflict it 
should be immediately straightened out ; for the present financial situa- 
tion demands the utmost clearness in order to avoid embarrassing sit- 
uations. 

Table XV below shows that a fairly even distribution of redemption 
charges has been effected. This has been done, however, by postpon- 
ing the first repayment of principal as much as 14, 17, 22 and 23 years. 
During all the time between the issuance of the bonds and the payment 
on the first instalment, interest is paid on the whole amount, so that 
the present method not only hugely increases the amount of interest 
paid but does not equalize the funded debt charges, which include 
both interest and repayment of principal. It will be observed that 
the twelfth and last issues of bonds on the list are each to be repaid in 
one instalment, 23 years after the dates of issue, interest being paid 
on the whole amounts for all that time. In these cases the interest paid 
before any reduction of principal occurs will amount to 100% or more 
of the total principal sums. 



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G7 



The condition is aggravated by the failure to establish sinking 
funds for long term non-serial bonds as provided by law. This is fun- 
damentally unsound. The Board should abandon the patch-work sys- 
tem of bond issues, whereby some bonds are repaid in one payment at 
maturity and others are paid in instalments beginning at varying 
periods after the issue of bonds. The serial bond method should be 
rigidly enforced in all future issues, and sinking funds established for 
those existing issues which are not now on the purely serial plan. 

3. Financial Reports. 

The absence of statistical data such as are usually found in pub- 
lished financial reports, was a serious handicap to this study. This 
being so, what must be the handicap to the taxpaying public in Akron 
and even to the Board itself in trying to' think effectively concerning 
the management of the public schools? 

Outside of statements of fund balances and amounts of money de- 
posited in the various banks, together with occasional calculations of 
bonded debt, interest payments, etc., there are no financial reports 
coming before the Board of which administrative use can be made. 
The annual summaries required by State authorities are of the most 
general type and are of no value in controlling costs during the year. 
This means that members of the Board must supply either from per- 
sonal knowledge of the facts or from past experience that information 
which is so essential to the efficient management of the business affairs 
of a large and growing school system, such as that of Akron. 

Probably the greatest lack in this connection is the absence of an 
annual financial and statistical report such as public corporations in 
general are in the habit of publishing. It is true that the legal re- 
quirements as to reporting are fulfilled and it is also true that other 
boards of education in Ohio besides that in Akron have felt obliged to 
withhold annual reports by reason of lack of funds. Nevertheless, the 
general summing up of physical and financial facts required for such 
a report would be of inestimable value in obtaining a clear insight 
into the business problems confronting the Board and would make 
necessary the absolute completeness and accuracy of all detailed 
records of distribution of cost, etc. 

The Board will find that a clear, concise annual report issued 
promptly to the public will disarm a great deal of unthinking criticism 
and will meet considerable thoughtful criticism. Taking the com- 
munity into its confidence will prove a good investment. The few 
hundred dollars which an annual report would cost should not prevent 
its publication. An informed electorate is generous. An uninformed 
electorate will become suspicious. 

III. BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION 
1. Organization of the Board. 

One of the first requirements of administrative efficiency is the 
proper organization of the Board to which administrative officials are 
responsible. The chart which follows represents graphically the 
organization of the Board and o-i v ,. s a general outline of the staff 
organization. 

G8 








i 
1 


1 

ft 


«-> 




k 


<M 







< ^i •) 











•& 






jj 




•§ 


> 


* *. 







V 

8 


« 


1 

f 

5 

i 




>- 

I 
I 




41 


S 


<o 


V 


^ 


*5 


* b * 


K 93 


0^' 



69 



No doubt the organization of the Board is based upon experience 
but the comparatively large number of committees would seem to be un- 
necessary. One committee would seem to be sufficient to deal with all 
such matters as supplies, repairs, janitorial service, heating, lighting 
and ventilation — all having to do with the operation of the physical 
plant — unless the committee busies itself with administration details 
properly in the purview of its administrative officials. It would seem 
also that the two committees on "teachers and schools" and "text- 
books and course of study" might be combined to advantage. A recent 
educational report by the Bureau of Governmental Research, Detroit, 
advises doing away with all standing committees, except a Committee 
of the Whole, the more or less technical details which now occupy a 
large part of the time of existing committees being relegated to the 
Board's responsible officials. 

When important matters of policy are referred to sub-committees, 
almost the whole discussion is apt to occur in the sub-committees, so 
that as a matter of courtesy or perhaps of routine, momentous deci- 
sions may be made by the Board as a whole on the mere recommenda- 
tion of a sub-committee — although a large part of the Board may not 
have the necessary information to vote intelligently on questions at 
issue. The sub-committee itself may not have been a unit so that the 
opinion of a minority of the Board may become effective. 

Before any matter of policy is decided by the Board it should be 
discussed by the whole Board. It is therefore recommended that all 
sub-committees be abolished, if necessary by appointing all members 
of the Committee on all sub-committees, and that any contentious or 
intricate problems be referred to small temporary committees of the 
Board for investigation, the results of which should be reported in 
full. All meetings should be public — save perhaps those of sub-com- 
mittees on the purchase of property — and the holding of partial or 
informal committee meetings for arriving at agreements which would 
render discussion in public unnecessary should be avoided. 

2. Procedure of the Board. 

An analysis of the minutes of the Board for the six months begin- 
ning November, 1915, shows that out of 156 matters considered during 
this term 48, or 31%, had to do with decisions as to policy. The re- 
maining 69% were concerned with financial and administrative routine. 
Experience has shown everywhere that the failure to separate rigidly 
legislative functions from executive functions is a prime cause of in- 
efficient administration. Granting these percentages obtain as a gen- 
eral thing, if the Board were entirely set free from administrative de- 
tails they would either have thrice as much time to devote to discussion 
of policies or they could cut down by two-thirds their investment of 
time in Board work. The former would be preferable. Such a pro- 
cedure would tend to induce a larger number of busy and capable 
citizens to be willing to serve on public boards and would thus widen 
the people's range ofirselection. 

Executive and administrative details should be left to responsible 
officials so that the legislative and policy-forming functions of the 



Board — their real functions — will not be swamped by the multiplicity 
of detail. 

3. Accounting*. 

The accounts of the Board are apparently sufficient to insure honesty 
of administration. They are also a sufficient basis for the required fi- 
nancial statements to State authorities. They are insufficient, however, 
for administrative purposes, inasmuch as they do not in every case show 
actual expenditures by month for any year but, in most cases, only 
cash payments. For effective administration, Boards must know the 
actual expense of administering each main function and that not simply 
by the year but by the month. In the absence of a property ledger 
and a stores ledger, and in view of the fact that expenses of one year 
are not always charged up to the fiscal year to "which they properly 
apply, the accounts cannot produce automatically, as they should, the 
cost facts necessary for administrative control. Approximate costs 
cannot be obtained without extensive analysis and accurate costs can- 
not be obtained at all. That is, knowledge of the actual value of all 
school property and accurate operating costs are not available at any 
given date. 

It is true that the present accounting system includes a distribution 
ledger in which, as nearly as may be, disbursements are classified both 
by schools and according to character ; but, as stated above, disburse- 
ments do not always correspond with the real expenses of the period 
covered and, moreover, the basis of distribution has changed consid- 
erably in recent years. From December, 1910, to September, 1914, 
with the exception of a short period in 1913, no distribution whatever 
of disbursements was made. Thus, neither comparative figures, total 
cost figures, nor unit cost figures are currently available for adminis- 
trative purposes. 

The Board maintains a bond record and frequent calculations of in- 
debtedness and interest are made. Disbursements from bond funds are 
duly recorded but are not in all cases distributed to the various school 
buildings. In the absence of depreciation accounts, this affects the 
accuracy of any estimates of operating costs.' 

The most complete records kept are those of salaries. In these there 
has been no break. An invoice file, voucher index, fund ledger, miscel- 
laneous receipts book and a warrant book are also maintained. 

The fact that during this study a very considerable re-analysis was 
necessary to obtain salient facts indicates that considerable informa- 
tion obtainable in this way has not, in practice, been used by the Board 
for administrative purposes. 

As time goes on it will become more and more difficult to secure 
memoranda from the accounts with the necessary detail. It is, there- 
fore, desirable that as scon as possible the accounts be placed on a 
basis which automatically produces the necessary facts without re- 
analysis and re-grouping. 

While a detailed accounting plan which would render currently 
available all information necessary for school administration could 
only be worked out on the ground and in close co-operation with the 

71 



State authorities, it is possible to make the following definite and basal 
recommendations : 

a, — That accounts be established on the revenue-expense basis as 
distinct from the receipts-disbursements basis; 

b — That a complete system of stores records and accounts be insti- 
tuted ; 

c — That monthly, quarterly and annual balance sheets and operating 
statements be prepared for the Board to assist them in admin- 
istration ; 

d — That functional and object of expenditure cost accounts be es- 
tablished showing total, per school and per pupil costs under 
heads similar to the following: 

GENERAL CONTROL (Regulative and Executive Service). 
School elections. 

Board of Education and Secretary's office — salaries. 
Board of Education and Secretary's office — supplies. 
Other expense of business control. 
Superintendent 's office — salaries. 
Superintendent 's office — supplies. 
Superintendent 's office — other expenses. 
Compulsory education — salaries. 
Compulsory education — other expenses. 
Other expense of educational control. 

INSTRUCTIONAL SERVICE (Supervision and Teaching). 
Supervisors — salaries. 
Supervisors — other expenses. 
Principal's office — salary of principal. 
Principal's office — salary of clerk. 
Principal's office — supplies. 
Principal's office — other expenses. 
Other expense of supervision. 
Salaries of teachers. 
Text books. 

Other supplies used in instruction. 
Commencement exercises and exhibits. 
Other expense of instruction. 

OPERATION OP SCHOOL PLANT. 

Wages of janitor and other employees. 

Fuel. 

Water. 

Light and power. 

Janitor's supplies. 

General care of grounds. 

Services other than personal. 

Other expense of operation. 

72 



MAINTENANCE OF PLANT (Upkeep). 
Upkeep of grounds (repairs). 
Repair of buildings. 
Repair and replacement of heating, lighting and plumbing 

equipment. 
Repair and replacement of apparatus used in instruction. 
Repair and replacement of furniture. 
Repair and replacement of other equipment. 
Other expense of maintenance. 

FIXED CHARGES. 
Pensions. 
Rents. 
Insurance. 
Taxes. 
Contributions and contingencies. 

DEBT SERVICE. 

Payment of bond — direct. 
Payment of bond — sinking fund. 
Redemption of short term loans. 
Payment of interest — on bonds. 
Payment of interest — on short term loans. 
Refunds of taxes and tuition. 

CAPITAL OUTLAY (Acquisition and Construction). 
Land. 

New buildings. 

Improvement of new grounds. 
Alteration of old buildings (not repairs). 
Equipment of new buildings — heating, highting, plumbing 

and electrical. 
Equipment of new buildings — furniture. 
Equipment of new buildings — instructional apparatus. 
Equipment of new buildings — other equipment. 
Equipment of old buildings — heating, lighting, plumbing and 

electrical. 
Equipment of old buildings — furniture. 
Equipment of old buildings — instructional apparatus. 
Equipment of old buildings — other equipment. 
Other capital outlay. 

AUXILIARY AGENCIES AND OTHER SUNDRY ACTIVI- 
TIES. 

Libraries — salaries. 

Libraries — books, repairs and replacements. 

Libraries — other expense. 

Transportation of pupils. 

Care of children in institutions. 

Provision of lunches. 

Community lectures and community centers. 

Recreation. 

Other expenses. 

73 



These headings .are taken from the uniform accounting system 
in use in the schools of the State of New York. They are, of 
course, only suggestive and would need modifications to meet 
, local conditions. It is, however, the best classification of accounts 
for school purposes yet devised. It should be stated that in 
order to obtain true cost figures, depreciation accounts for build- 
ings and equipment must be established. 

e — That the Board's budget and the classification of accounts be 
made to correspond, and that true appropriation accounts be set 
up corresponding to the budget headings under which appropria- 
tions are to be made by the Board. 

It will be necessary in order to obtain the full advantage of im- 
proved accounting and budget procedure to establish definite 
standards of service and cost as well as physical standards for 
articles purchased and materials used. To insure adherence to 
these standards continuous tests should be carried on as, for ex- 
ample, in the case of coal. It is recommended that co-operative 
arrangements be established with the Municipal University and 
the City Testing: Laboratory for the satisfactory making of such 
tests. Not only would the Board benefit in the way of obtaining 
full and uniform value, but the bi-product of training resulting to 
the students of the local University — many of them graduates of 
the High Schools — would be extremely valuable to them and to 
the community. 

4. Audits. 

According to law, the accounts of the Board are audited by the State 
authorities, approximately every two years. Private audits were made 
in 1912 and 1913. It is, therefore, evident that the books have been 
open to competent inspection and that little, if any, fault can be found 
with the accounts if their present basis be accepted. Several instances 
of disagreement between annual statements and original documents 
were met with during the study, but, in all cases but one, they were 
due to differences in accuracy of distribution. The only case of actual 
inaccuracy was due simply to an error in transcribing. It should 
further be pointed out that while , the approximate accuracy of the 
tables in this report may be assumed, the absence of continuous records 
in some cases and some uncertainty as to the absolute correctness of 
some data used, make it impossible to guarantee their absolute ac- 
curacy. Previous, therefore, to the installation of any new system of 
accounting, a thorough audit by some competent private firm is recom- 
mended. Its suggestions will be of service in working out, with the 
State authorities, a system adapted to local needs and conforming with 
the State requirements. 

5. Office Arrangements. 

In connection will] the business offices of the Board the following 
suggestions are offered : 

a — That all existing records be kepi up to date; 

74 



b — That greater attention be given to planning the day's work; 

c — That time sheets be instituted ; 

d — That requests for information be handled with greater prompt- 
ness ; 

e — That office rules be adopted to cut down the loss of time from the 
interruption of visitors. 

In connection with the above suggestions it should be borne in mind 
that, especially previous to 1914-1915, the business office has been 
undermanned, and that the handicaps arising from its being used at 
the same time for accounting, the distribution of supplies, and the 
meetings of the Board, are considerable. 

6. Contracts. 

Contracts for buildings are let according to provisions of Section 
7623 of the General Code. Bids in the case of buildings are solicited 
under four distinct titles, namely: General Contract; Heating and 
Ventilating ; Plumbing ; and Electric Wiring. This is in accordance 
with good practice now obtaining. As to how the handling of con- 
tracts has worked out, the surest test is a comparison between contract 
and actual costs of buildings constructed under contract. A tabula- 
tion in this connection has been made by the central office as follows : 

Building Contract Price* Actual Cost* Difference 

Jennings $102,748.68 $ 94,042.56 $8,706.12 

Bowen - 105,532.06 100,872.54 4,659.52 

Robinson Annex 80,869.37 77,591.70 3,277.67 

Miller Annex 90,197.00 90,929.83 732.83t 

Portage Path Annex 70,807.07 61,936.72 8,870.35 

F. H^Mason 99,434.47 106,506.09 7,071.62t 

* Excluding land. 

t Excess. 

This showing speaks well, in the main, for the financial side of the 
contract work on buildings. It may be fairly doubted, however, 
whether the "actual cost" figures are complete in all cases. Indeed 
this much has been intimated by the School Clerk. 

Another important point in this connection is the unit or cubic foot 
cost of buildings erected under contract. For five of the buildings 
cited the approximate unit costs are : 

Bowen $0,185 per cubic foot 

Robinson Annex 0.232 per cubic foot 

Miller Annex 0.356 per cubic foot 

Portage Path Annex 0.276 per cubic foot 

F. H. Mason 0.215 per cubic foot 

No detailed analysis of conditions and methods of construction has 
been possible, so that no comment is offered with regard to these unit 
costs. Continuous cost comparisons of this sort, however, should prove 
useful in the construction of future school buildings. 

7. Supplies. 

The Board is to be commended not only for purchasing supplies 
under annual contracts, but in setting the dates of the contracts at 



times when the markets seem to be most advantageous. That the pur- 
chase of supplies according to contract has been a source of strength 
in dealing with the various firms that handle school supplies can be 
seen from the information presented in Table XVI. Here it is evident 
that although in the case of the twenty-nine supplies listed, there has 
been an increase in price in the case of seventeen items, there has 
been no increase (a decrease in some instances) in the case of twelve 
items. In a rapidly rising market such as the present, a continuous 
comparative record of this sort tends to place the Board in a very ad- 
vantageous position when doing business with dealers in school sup- 
plies. 

TABLE XVI. 
COMPARATIVE COST OF SCHOOL SUPPLIES 
1907-1908 and 1916-1917 

Price Price Per cent 

ITEM UNIT 1907-8 1916-17 Increase 

Stationery and Drawing Supplies: 

Foolscap paper, single sheets .Ream $0.33 $0.42 27% 

Notepaper, 5x8 Ream .17* .14 20 x 

Letter-paper Ream .27*. .31 13 

Manilla writing paper, ink Ream .27 .36 33 

Legal Cap Ream .77* 1.05 35 

English Note (filler) Ream .39 .31 20 x 

Composition Books 100 1.69 2.70 58 

Spelling Records, No. 1 100 1.55 1.80 16 

Spelling Records, No. 2 100 2.40 2.60 8 

Pens _ Gross .18 .20 11 

Lead Pencils Gross 1.75 1.65 6 x 

Pen-holders Gross .75 1.50 100 

Crayon, White Dustless Gross .18 .12* 30 x 

Library Paste Gallon .75 .65 13 x 

Pencil Paper (News, 7x10) Lb. .02 25/44 .04 60 

Janitors' Supplies: 

Ammonia ■. Qt. .08* .07* 12 x 

Waste Baskets Each .45 .48 13 

Brooms ., Dozen 3.25 4.75 46 

Counter Brushes Each .40 .39* 1 x 

Floor Brushes Each .88 .85 3 x 

Chamois Skins .Each .47* .48 1 

Cheesecloth , ..Yard .04 .04 

Mop Cloth (Flannel) .Yard .22* .25 11 

Gas Mantles Each .12 .06 50 x 

Oil Soap (Linseed) 10-lb. Pails Pail .78 1.65 110 

Toilet Soap, 3-oz. bars 100 3.50 1.70 51 

Laundry Soap, 10-oz. bars 100 2.70 2.70 

Toilet Paper, 2,000-sheet roll .Roll .074, .09 24 

Washin g Powder, 4-lb. packages ....Lb. .03§ .03* 5 x 

Net Average Per Cent Increase all items 35% 

x Decrease. 

Coal is the most important single article purchased on contract by 
the Board. Contract prices for coal show a uniform increase, the 
average price, delivered, being $2.36 per ton in 1907-1908 and $2.70 per 
ton in 1916-1917. This increase is not excessive in view of general con- 
ditions, but the quality of the coal delivered this year, in the opinion 
of most of the school janitors, was very poor. Any tendency to make 
up for a low price by supplying an inferior grade can be effectually 
blocked if each article is purchased according to a standard and 
tested on delivery as suggested in foregoing paragraphs. 

76 



PART B 

THE PHYSICAL PLANT AND 
EQUIPMENT 



I. SITES AND BUILDINGS. 
1. General. 

Akron has three High Schools, one combined normal-model-elemen- 
tary school, and twenty-six elementary schools, one of which also pro- 
vides for the first two years of High School. These buildings vary 
from one-room" rural schools to the "socialized" type, of which the 
Bowen is an example. The following pages contain photographs of 
the six main types of school building found in Akron. These may be 
listed as to architectural type and layout and described briefly as fol- 
lows r 

a — The one-room school — 4 examples. This type will soon become 

extinct in Akron. (Page 78.) 
b — A type representing a half-way station between rural and urban 

models. (Page 78.) 

c — The familiar gable type, represented bv six buildings. (Page 

79.) 

d — The composite building formed by the addition of a modern wing 
to an old building of the gable type. (Page 79.) 

e — The "court" type, probably the most distinctive of all Akron 
types, with seven examples. Buildings of this kind have a cen- 
tral court above which class-rooms are ranged and into which 
they enter. The court goes up two stories, but the second story 
has a promenade about the central well. This type of building 
is very attractive, particularly on the inside, and from the stand- 
point of the old style rigid discipline has various points to com- 
mend it. The central court is very well adapted to folk dancing 
and light gymnastics but on account of its location and absence 
of direct lighting is not suitable for gymnasium work. On ac- 
count also of its location amid class-rooms it is not available for 
many auditorium purposes and even after school hours the labor 
of preparing it for such use and removing furniture and equip- 
ment after use is very arduous and tends to discourage continu- 
ous community participation in the social center life possible to 
all schools. All things considered, apart from its social and 
special uses, it is doubtful if this type of building is economically 
justifiable. (Page 80.) 

f — The modern or improved "auditorium" type of school, of which 
the Bowen and Jennings are two outstanding examples. Two 
more buildings of this type are about to be erected. It is planned 
to make these buildings an improvement even on the two schools 
of this type now extant, (Page 80.) 



(Merriman) 



SCHOOL BUILDING— Type "A." 




(Caldwell) 



SCHOOL BUILDING— Type "B." 




78 



(Kent) 



SCHOOL BUILDING— Type "C." 




(Bryan) 



SCHOOL BUILDING— Type "D." 




SCHOOL BUILDING— Type "E. 



I Fraunfelter) 




SCHOOL BUILDING— Type "F.' 



(Bowen) 




80 



That so many types of school buildings are to be found in Akron is 
not surprising. The rapid growth of the city would entirely account 
for it. Including kindergarten seats and other special sittings there 
are in Akron 23,338 separate sittings. The number of pupils in school 
at a given time may rise as high as 21,554. That is, 91.9% of the seats 
are in use at that period in the year when there is the greatest effective 
membership. Considering that, obviously, it is not always possible to 
put the child without a seat where there is a seat without a child, this 
is a high percentage of use. Without a radically different type of 
organization it could hardly be improved. That there has been so little 
actual congestion is a remarkable fact. Among rapidly growing cities, 
Akron's situation may be regarded as almost unique. Only three 
portable structures were found in Akron. During a similar study made 
by the same observer in a city of about 350,000, two years ago, seventy 
such buildings were found. At the same time it must be noted that 
this excellent record for Akron has been secured partly by the sacrifice 
of special plant and equipment of prime educational value. In other 
parts of this report the desirability of enriching the motor elements in 
elementary education has been emphasized. These are the elements 
which have suffered most as a result of what, in the face of the State 
laws, seemed to be necessary economies in construction. As is pointed 
out in Part "C," the evil results of this have been greatly minimized 
by developing, as far as possible, the "expression" side of academic 
subjects, but the time is now here when the best, most complete and 
most all-round training must be demanded for the children of Akron. 
The building of the Bowen, Mason and Jennings schools and the pro- 
jection of two even more modern buildings indicates that the present 
trend in school construction is in the right general direction. Chapter 
VIII. of Part "B" of this report outlines a tentative building program 
for Akron. 

During the study every building in Akron was visited and careful 
njotes taken on the main points affecting health, safety and suitability 
for school purposes. Those who made the study were given the full 
co-operation of the Board and of all its employees and are under great 
obligation to the school authorities for extensive information supplied 
and admission to official files and records. 

The items noticed in the study are best set forth by the score sheet 
below : 

TOTAL PERFECT SCORE 100% 

1. Location 15% 

Site 3% 

Noise Conditions 3 

Dust or Smoke Conditions 3 

Accessibility 3 

Environment 3 

2. Grounds 10% 

Adequacy 2% 

Surface Conditions 2 

Appearance 2 

Apparatus 4 

81 



3. Structural Conditions 20% 

Fire Hazard 5% 

State of Repair 5 

Design 5 

Construction 5 

4. Heating and Ventilation 25% 

Adequacy of Plant -V; 

Arrangement 5 

Intake Conditions 5 

Smoke Conditions 5 

Operation :.. 5 

Country Schools Only : 

Adequacy 15 

Arrangement 10 

5. Sanitation 30% 

Adequacy of Facilities 5% 

Type - 5 

Lighting 5 

Air Conditions ... : 5 

Drainage - 2 

Drinking Water Facilities 3 

Appearance 5 

Country Schools Only : 

Adequacy 10 

Condition 10 

Drinking Water Facilities 10 

The scores of individual schools on this basis are given in Table 
XVII which follows. 



82 



TABLE XVII. 
SUMMARY OF SCHOOL SCORES 
(For details see Table XVII-A) 

Total Loca- Struc- Heating and Sani- 

SCHOOL Score tion Grounds ture Ventilation tation 

Central High School 68 15 8 15 15 15 

South High School 85 9 6 20 25 25 

West High School 93 15 8 20 25 25 

Average— High Schools 82 13 7 18 22 22 

Allen 62 6 6 10 15 25 

Bowen 71* 9 2* 15 20 25 

Brittain 53 12 6 10 16 10 

Bryan - 74.5 15 2 15 20 22.5 

Caldwell 73 15 6 12.5 17.5 22 

Crosby M 15 6 10 25 10 

Forest Hill 88 15 G 20 25 22 

F. H. Mason 88 12 6 20 20 30 

Fraunfelter 0G 15 6 15 15 15 

Goodyear Heights 71 15 6 10 20 20 

Grace 73 12 6 15 20 20 

Henry 74 15 6 15 25 13 

Howe 58 12 4 12.5 17.5 12 

Jennings 81 15 6 15 15 30 

Kent GO 9 6 10 20 15 

Lane 76 12 4 15 17.5 27.5 

Leggett 74 15 4 15 17.5 22.5 

Lincoln 74 15 6 10 20 23 

Miller 65 9 6 10 15 25 

Perkins Normal 50.5 12 4 7.5 15 12 

Portage Path 86 15 6 20 15 30 

Robinson 80 9 6 15 20 30 

Samuel Findley 79.5 15 6 12.5 20 26 

Spicer 63 15 8 10 15 15 

Average— Elementary Schools.. 71.5 13 6 13.5 18 21 

Merriman 66 15 6 10 25 10 

Lovers' Lane 46 15 G 5 20 

Oak Grove 61 12 4 15 20 10 

Triplett 53.5 15 6 10 22.5 

Average — Country Schools 56.5 14 5.5 10 22 5 

AVERAGE FOR ENTIRE 

SYSTEM 70 13 G 14 21 16 

PERFECT SCORE 100 15 10 20 25 30 

* Temporary conditions which are being attended to ; building not accepted by Board at time 
of inspection. The final score of this building would be much higher. 

These scores cannot, of course, be regarded as authoritative and are 
presented mainly for illustrative purposes. 

While the standard used can be considered simply as a provisional 
one, the results are of great value and will be of still greater value if 
similar scoring is done each year for comparative purposes, particu- 
larly under the headings of grounds, ventilation and sanitation. 
Finely itemized score cards on the care of buildings might be drawn up 
as a basis for the control of janitorial services and as a spur to friendly 
rivalry between schools. For this purpose, only points under the con- 
trol of principals, teachers, janitors and pupils should be considered. 

S3 



In the appendix will be found Table XVII-A which gives, in more 
detailed form, the information supplied in Table XVII. 

In order to give a more definite idea of actual conditions found, 
summaries of field notes are given below : 

2. Locations and Sites — Summary of Inspection. 

Out of 31 school locations considered, 21 may be regarded as satis- 
factory. The following defects were noted with regard to the remain- 
ing 10 locations : 

South High School — Cramped location. 

Allen School — Street noises and dust. 

Bowen School — Occasional smoke nuisance. 

Grace School — Street noises. 

Kent School — Street noises and dirt. 

Lane School— Ground low. 

Miller School — Noise from trains; trouble from smoke. 

Perkins School — Street noises. 

Robinson School — Ground low. 

Oak Grove School — Inconvenience of access. 

It needs but little familiarity with the actual details of these loca- 
tions to show that in a majority of cases the fault is due to conditions 
for which the Board of Education cannot be held responsible. Even 
in the case of the Lane and Robinson Schools the obvious convenience 
of these buildings for the people of the neighborhood goes far to equal- 
ize the disadvantage as to site. On the whole, it must be considered 
that Akron's school locations have been chosen with commendable 
care ; and the selection of new sites at the present time — the Margaret 
Park and Merriman locations, for example — show that the Board is 
alive to the value of "high and dry" situations for all schools. 

3. School Grounds — Summary of Inspection. 

The school grounds of Akron are in practically all cases deficient in 
play-ground apparatus for children. The seriousness of this is not 
diminished by considerations of economy or the effects of the Smith 
Law. While Akron, comparatively, can hardly be regarded as a con- 
gested city, and many open places still remain where children may 
play after school hours, there is no promise of the permanency of these 
conditions. Moreover, there are several schools — such as the Spicer, 
Miller, Crosby, Henry, Allen, Bowen and Kent Schools — where a 
properly equipped and supervised school yard would draw a continu- 
ous stream of school children. Akron cannot afford NOT to exploit 
to the full this avenue to child culture, and, therefore, to the develop- 
ment of citizens. 

Upon a large number of the yards cinders have been spread. These 
seem to provide a very satisfactory surface for play. The rather ugly, 
bleak appearance given by the cinders could be relieved greatly by 
fringes of trees and strips of grass around the play areas. 

84 



4. Structural Conditions — Summary of Inspection. 

Of the thirty-one individual school buildings in the Akron system, 
there are eight that may be considered as practically perfect from the 
standpoint of structural conditions. Twenty-three schools are not fire- 
proof, in the modern sense. Sixteen schools show flaws in walls, ceil- 
ings, floors or staircases. For the most part these can be taken care of 
by repairs or slight alterations. The schedule below gives a summary 
of field notes on the different buildings : 



SCHEDULE OF STRUCTURAL DEFECTS. 



Central High School — In old building, warped woodwork and leaky 
roof, together with defects in plastering. In new building, leak- 
ing under boys' locker-room. 

South High School — No special criticism. Is beginning to show signs 
of wear — cracks in plastering, etc. Leak in fan room which 
engineer had tried to remedy but so far had not succeeded in 
stopping. 

West High School — No comment. 

Allen School — Considering age, building is in good repair. Front stair- 
case, however, is badly worn and should be replaced. Cracks in 
plastering of ceilings and walls numerous. Exposed electric wir- 
ing in attic. Danger in case insulation should wear off. 

Bowen School — Defects in design noticed ; thermostats not properly 
located; ceiling in one of the open-air class-rooms not according 
to standard ; careless connection between floor and staircase on 
top floor. Auditorium is not high enough and lower hallway is 
not sufficiently lighted. Model flat is defective in not receiving 
direct light through windows. (This building not yet accepted 
by Board of Education.) 

Bryan School — Ceilings in old building badly "peeled." Walls have 
too dark tints. New building satisfactory. 

Caldwell School — Old portion not fireproof ; walls and ceilings cracked ; 
wooden rafters under main floor and over furnace are exposed. 
New portion gives impression of frail construction. A number of 
very recent improvements indicate that conditions are recognized. 

Crosby School — Not fireproof. Heating plant not in fireproof com- 
partment. Stairs badly worn, particularly basement stairs. Cracks 
in outside brickwork indicate settlement. No "panic bolts" 
observed. 

Forest Hill School — No comment except that general type of construc- 
tion seems frail. 

F. H. Mason School — No comment except that objection was made to 
alleged waste of space occasioned by five store-rooms. 

85 



Fraunfelter School— It is beginning to show age; woodwork badly 
warped in a number of places. Several cracks in plastering. At- 
tractive in appearance but contains too much exposed woodwork. 
Is not fireproof but of "slow burning" construction. 

Goodyear Heights— Frame building without fire protection. (No 
portable extinguishers seen.) Bad designing; entrance on two 
sides is through toilet rooms to small central hall. Construction 
not good; evidence of defective plastering. 

Grace School — Not fireproof but in excellent state of repair. 

Henry School — Not fireproof but in good structural condition. Base- 
ment room not well adapted for class-room work. 

Howe School — Old portion of building in poor condition; plastering 
in practically all rooms defective; floors and stairs badly worn; 
several dark cloak rooms. In two rooms holes in ceiling have been 
allowed to remain during entire school year. Outside walls of old 
building are cracked and indicate settling. Basement floor rough 
and uneven and space badly cut up by partition walls. (This 
general defect is typical of the "gable" type of school.) New 
portion of school in good structural condition. 

Jennings School — Faults principally in design; passageway through 
assembly hall on lower floor; gymnasium, in basement cramped; 
coal-room situated next to fan room, which allows coal dust to get 
into ventilating ducts. 

Kent School — Older portions of building show considerable wear and 
tear. Front stairs narrow and badly worn; floors in portions of 
hallway and in seven class-rooms in need of replacement ; plaster- 
ing in two rooms badly cracked ; in one room had recently been 
partially removed to prevent its falling down. Basement badly 
cut up by partitions, but well kept. 

Lane School — North wing of old building has two badly cracked walls 
and ceilings, indicating settling or defective foundation. Other- 
wise in good condition. 

Leggett School — Old building shows signs of settling ; floor in one room 
sags noticeably. Plastering fell from ceiling in one of down- 
stairs rooms last year. Cracks in ceiling and walls numerous. 
New building satisfactory. 

Lincoln School — Evidence of poor construction ; front stairs and ap- 
proach are badly worn; leak in roof has given much trouble; 
plastering on exposed sides of rooms has decomposed, leaving un- 
sightly appearance. A number of cracks in plastering. 

Miller School — Old building not fireproof but of "slow burning" con- 
struction. Shows settling. Large number of cracks in walls ; ceil- 
ing in two rooms broken. Floors show wear. Roof reported to 
leak in two places. New building reported not carefully finished by 
builders ; doors and windows loose. Deficiency in accommodation 
for pupils' wraps noticed throughout this school. (This condi- 
tion has been remedied.) Principal complains that two rooms in 

SG 



old building have been made unserviceable by addition of new 
wing and has requested structural alterations to remedy this con- 
dition. 

Perkins Normal School — Old building of old design and not in accord- 
ance with modern standards. Not fireproof. Halls and stair- 
ways too narrow. Floors, walls and ceilings in poor state of re- 
pair ; in one room a hole in plastering several feet square ; in 
other rooms appearance of plastering very unsatisfactory. Base- 
ment room damp and ill-adapted for school purposes. (In this 
room was noticed an escape valve connected with the heating plant 
which operates all day. to the annoyance of teacher and pupils.) 
State Building Department on January 3, 1917, recommended what 
amounts to a reconstruction of the entire building and declared 
basement room unfit for class-room purposes. No action taken as 
yet. In new building conditions are better, although building is 
not fireproof, and there are numerous cracks in plastering. (See 
also schedule for sanitary defects.) 

Portage Path School — Conditions in general satisfactory, although 
complaint has been made that room used as gymnasium is very 
much too small for the purpose. At time of visit part of basement 
lavatories not completed and a recent bursting of water pipe, due 
to absence of dampers on ventilating outlet, had caused consid- 
erable trouble. 

Robinson School — Indications of settling of portions of old building. 
Cracks in plastering and decomposed plastering on exposed side of 
several rooms. Noise from ventilating hoods disturbs some class- 
rooms. Water pressure frequently inadequate and said to be due 
to nearness of large factories. 

Samuel Findley School — Old building in poor state of repair ; in one 
room ceiling is broken through and in other rooms it appears to 
be loose. Pupils' wraps placed in and about hallways and in room 
formerly used as principal's office. Floors badly worn. New 
building of "slow burning" type and in good structural condi- 
tion. 

Spicer School — Older portions of building show hard wear ; large 
cracks in floors and several cracks in plastering. Basement stair- 
case narrow and badly worn. Floor of upstairs hall should be re- 
placed. Part of basement has no flooring and principal has ob- 
served that rooms above this section of basement have unusually 
cold floors. Basement badly cut up by partitions which interfere 
with passageway. 

Country Schools — At Merriman School whole of storage-room is bulg- 
ing badly and threatens to collapse. Lovers' Lane School and old 
building of Triplett are in poor structural condition. 

As a matter of fact, the school buildings of Akron do not exhibit the 
more glaring faults common to many American school systems. As 
to neglect of repairs, however, such as were noticed in the Howe, Kent 
and Perkins School buildings, there can be no entirely satisfactory ex- 

87 



planation. At the Howe School it was reported to the observer that 
the notice of the Board of Education had been directed to the holes in 
the ceiling and the disfigured walls at the beginning of the present 
school year, while in the Perkins School a large rent in the plastering 
had existed for several weeks previous to the time of inspection. The 
floors in at least two rooms at the Kent School were so badly worn as 
to make satisfactory cleaning a practical impossibility. It is certainly 
of great sanitary and ethical importance that all school buildings 
should be kept in a state cf good repair. 

5. Fire Escapes. 

Special mention at this time should be made of the fire escapes which 
are attached to the non-fireproof "gable" type of school. It was re- 
ported to the observer by several principals that specific orders had 
been issued against the use of these structures on the ground that they 
were not safe for the school children to use. Examination of typical 
lire escapes has shown that this is a fact. For all practical purposes, 
therefore, these fire escapes might better not exist. 

As long as there are non-fireproof school buildings the law requires 
fire escapes to be attached and, as this is the case, making them safe 
would seem to be a wiser solution than directing that they should not 
be used. The fire escapes can be made safe at moderate cost if metal 
strips are riveted across the vertical portions of the stairs and if a light 
sheet iron covering is erected over the length of the staircase. It 
makes a rather poor impression upon a visitor when he learns that the 
fire escapes are not used at fire drills or dismissals. Failing the use of 
spiral fire escapes or some better type, which should have been installed 
years ago, it would appear to be good policy to make the existing struc- 
tures serve their purpose at least during such time as the non-fireproof 
schools are used. 

See Table XVIII which follows : 



TABLE XVni. 

PHYSICAL STATISTICS OF AKRON SCHOOLS 

Date of Last Number of 
SCHOOL TYPE Addition Rooms Used 

A. Central High Partially fireproof 1902 35 

B. South High Fireproof, modern 1911 46 

C. West High Fireproof, modern 1914 50 

1. Allen Not fireproof, gable 1893 16 

2. Bowen Fireproof, modern 1916 18 

3. Brittain N"ot fireproof, country 189- 4 

4. Bryan Partially fireproof 1912 20 

5. Caldwell Part fireproof 1906 7 

6. Crosby Not fireproof, gable .....1893 13 

7. Forest Hill Part fireproof 1914 4 

8. F. H. Mason Fireproof, modern 1913 18 

9. Fraunfelter Partially fireproof 1904 15 

10. Goodyear Heights Not fireproof, country '. 1913 4 

11. Grace Not fireproof, gable 1890 11 

12. Henry Not fireproof, gable 1894 13 

13. Howe Not fireproof, gable 1895 22 

14. Jennings Fireproof, modern 1916 22 

15. Kent Not fireproof, gable 1897 16 

16. Lane Partially fireproof, composite 1913 30 

17. Leggett Partially fireproof, composite 1912 24 

18. Lincoln Fireproof, modern 1910 15 

19. Miller Partially fireproof, composite 1915 32 

20. Perkins Normal Not fireproof, gable 1900 6 

21. Portage Path Fireproof, modern 1916 22 

22. Robinson Fireproof, modern 1916 30 

23. S. Findley Partially fireproof 1905 20 

24. Spicer Not fireproof, gable 1897 17 

25. Merriman Not fireproof, country 188.. 1 

26. Lovers' Lane Not fireproof, country 1881 1 

27. Oak Grove Not fireproof, country .....1916 2 

28. Triplett Not fireproof, country 188.. 2 

6. Heating* and Ventilating Plants — Summary of Inspection. 

Fifteen schools have fairly satisfactory heating and ventilating sys- 
tems. One objection to all school heating and ventilating systems in- 
spected is the complete absence of adequate humidifying apparatus. 
Even in those schools where some attempt has been made to moisten 
the air, actual tests in the class-room proved that the provision made 
was inadequate. In view of the harmful effects of dry, hot air upon 
the respiratory systems of teachers and children it is to be hoped that 
the Board of Education will take immediate steps to improve the 
quality of the air in the schools, adopting or adjusting to local condi- 
tions methods which have proved satisfactory elsewhere. 

The other most serious defect is the failure to cope adequately with 
the dust and smoke nuisances. In 15 schools the fresh air intake is 
at or below the ground level and in 4 others -i feet or less above it. 
Wherever there is mechanical ventilation this results not only in 
drawing in air with a heavy smoke content but also dust from the 
street or grounds more or less laden with disease germs. None of the 
schools inspected reported air-washing apparatus at the time of in- 
spection, although a temporary air-cleaning device has since been 

89 



installed at one school. If Akron is to continue its policy of practically 
unlimited pollution of the air by smoke from factories and residences, 
it must do something to purify it for the children during school hours 
at least. The Pittsburgh studies on the smoke nuisance show conclu- 
sively that smoke is an irritant to the lining of the respiratory pas- 
sages and that smoke, as well as dust, are predisposing causes of dis- 
ease. In his introduction to the Mellon Institute "Papers on the In- 
fluence of Smoke on Health," Dr. White summarizes the results as fol- 
lows: "In simple terms, the smokier the atmosphere, the more colds 
and bronchitis." 

It is evident that purifying- the air supplied to school-rooms can- 
not remove the danger, if, while at home and on the street, the children 
are compelled to breathe the vitiated air. It would seem reasonable 
that while money spent on washing apparatus in the schools would do 
much to improve the physical and, therefore, the mental efficiency of 
teachers and children, a like amount spent on the reduction of the 
smoke nuisance at its source would do infinitely more both for adults 
and children. Here is an avenue for co-operation between the city, the 
Board of Education and the University. The Mellon Institute of In- 
dustrial Research and School of Specific Industries has published nine 
monographs" summing up the results of its investigations. These have 
resulted in greatly improved conditions in Pittsburgh and point the 
way for Akron. 

*Outline of the Smoke Investigation. 
Bibliography of Smoke and Smoke Prevention. 

Psychological Aspects of the Problem of Atmospheric Smoke Pollution. 
The Economic Cost of the Smoke Nuisance to Pittsburgh. 
The Meteorological Aspect of the Smoke Problem. 
Papers on the Effect of Smoke on Building Materials. 
The Effect of the Soot in Smoke on Vegetation. 
Some Engineering Phases of Pittsburgh's Smoke Problem. 
Papers on the Influence of Smoke on Health. 

The details of the ventilation and heating of the Akron schools ap- 
pear in Chapter II of Part "B" in connection with investigations of 
the individual rooms. Actual class-room tests are the only basis for 
estimating in practice the working efficiency of heating and ventilating 
systems, no matter how perfect they may be theoretically. 

Below is a schedule of defects actually observed in the Akron 
schools : 

SCHEDULE OF DEFECTS ACTUALLY OBSERVED- 
HEATING AND VENTILATING. 



Central High School — Reported to be inadequate to heat building. 

Allen School — Auxiliary furnaces and ventilating fan had to close 
down for a day during the eold weather, due to low pressure. 
Difficulties with air calculation reported by several teachers. 

Bowen School — Faulty location of several thermostats caused trouble 
in regulating room temperature. 

Bnttain School — Un jacketed stove in old building. 

90 



Caldwell School — Faulty location of ventilating inlets in portion of 
building (floor level). Large hot-air duct runs directly across 
ceiling of Kindergarten room. 

F. H. Mason School — Defective location of valves makes it necessary 
to notify janitor personally of any needed regulation of room 
temperatures. 

Fraunfelter School — Complaints as to quality of air in two rooms. 
Odor of smoke noticed in one room. 

Goodyear Heights — Stoves are not properly "jacketed." 

Grace School — Facilities reported to be inadequate. 

Howe School — Air for ventilating system being drawn partly from 
cellar at time of visit. 

Jennings School— Temperatures too high. Principal's office 89° and 
adjoining class-rooms 74° at time of visit. Coal dust in fan room 
(See plate I). 

Kent School — Janitor unfamiliar with ventilating arrangements ; tem- 
perature regulation difficult in portions of building. 

Lane School — Temperature regulation defective in four rooms ; soot 
deposits near air inlets ; deficient gas pressure during cold snap ; 
excessive temperature in one of the attached "barrack" buildings 
due to unjacketed stove and poor regulation. 

Leggett School — Trouble with smoke, due to insufficient height of 
chimney; heavy deposits of soot near room inlets; "back-draft" 
at night due to lack of proper damper facilities. 

Miller School — Trouble with smoke; heavy soot deposits near room in- 
lets. 

Perkins Normal School — Defective operation, causing a water pipe to 
freeze and burst one morning ; inconvenient arrangement of boiler ; 
odors in rooms. 

Portage Path School — Thermostats reported to register incorrectly ; 
soot deposits ; smoke noticed in three rooms during time of visit ; 
defective location of fresh air intake (now being remedied) ; lack 
of dampers to prevent "back-drafts." 

Robinson School — Down-drafts and smoke when wind is unfavorable. 

Samuel Findley School — Insufficient number of coils for heating air 
reported ; hard to keep warm in coldest weather ; gas pressure for 
fan deficient during cold snap. 

Spicer Schools — Insufficient radiating surface reported; closed once 
during cold snap due to frozen steam pipes; one extreme example 
of bad ventilating arrangements in a class-room. 

Country Schools — Unjacketed stoves at Lovers' Lane and portion of 
Triplett. 

The advantage of continuous comparative records of the cost of 
heating and ventilating the various schools is obvious. Schools of 

91 



similar age, construction and size should have similar costs, and the 
differences between dissimilar schools should be readily explainable. 
Such comparative records are necessary for the adequate control of 
.•janitorial service. 

The table and chart which follow set forth the fuel costs for 1915- 
1916 for some schools. It will be noticed that the unit fuel costs for 
the newest structures are the lowest, and for the older schools, the 
highest. 



TABLE XIX. 



COMPARATIVE FUEL COSTS IN AKRON SCHOOLS 1915-1916 
(Arranged according to least Comparative Cost.) 

Cubic Feet 
of Space 
SCHOOL Heated* 

Bowen 520,450 

Robinson 338,236 

Robinson — Annex 317,100 

Miller 397,950 

Miller Annex 242,165 

Crosby 517,770 

Fraunfelter 512,890 

Grace 361,560 

Lane 313,820 

Lane — Annex 276,956 

Portage Path 213,019 

Portage Path— Annex 301,948 

Henry 542,440 

Howe 453,550 

Howe — Annex 179,193 

Lincoln 338,235 

F. H. Mason 471,203 

Bryan (old) 156,676 

Bryan — Annex 242,165 

S. Findley 62,088 

S. Findley— Annex 340,480 

Keril 420,000 

Allen 283,000 

Leggett (old) 156,676 

Leggett — Annex 367,028 

Spicer 376,974 

Perkins (old) 173,315 

I'd kins— Normal 164,021 



Type of Plant 


Cost of Fuel 
1915-1916 


Cost of Fuel 
per 1000 Ft. of 
Space Heated 


Mech. Blast 


$206.57 


$0.40 


Mech. Blast 






Mech. Blast 


317.33 


0.48 


Mech. Blast 






Mech. Blast 


443.29 


0.69 


Furnaces 


369.01 


0.71 


Mech. Blast 


381.16 


0.74 


Furnaces 


285.48 


0.79 


Mech. Blast 






Mech. Blast : 


580.84 


0.79 


Mech. Blast 






Mech. Blast 


416.83 


0.81 


Furnaces 


440.57 


0.81 


Furnaces 






Mech. Blast 


560.82 


0.89 


Mech. Blast 


363.09 


1.07 


Mech. Blast 


530.40 


1.13 


Furnaces 






Mech. Blast 


488.41 


1.22 


Furnaces 






Steam Blast 


511.69 


1.27 


Furnaces — Steam . 


538.46 


1.28 


Furnaces 


398.04 


1.41 


Furnaces 






Mech. Blast 


750.10 


1.43 • 


Furnace — Steam . 


580.97 


1.54 


Furnace — Steam . 






Mech. Blast 


573.67 


1.70 



Includes basement space where basements are used. 



92 



Comparative Cost of Fuel Per 1,000 Cu. Ft. of Space Heated 
During- Year 1915-1916— For 19 Schools 



190 

teo 

1.70 
/.60 
/.SO 
1.4-0 
ISO 
t.£0 



l.OO 



.90 



.60 
.SO 
.4-0 
JO 
£0 
JO 









k <Q <d 



-4 



*z 



93 



7. General Sanitation — Summary of Inspection. 

As unsatisfactory progress of pupils in school can often be traced 
to insanitary living or school conditions, a painstaking study was 
made of sanitary conditions in the schools of Akron. 

The schools where the general insanitary conditions (other than 
those connected with ventilation) were found were few in number; 
and in only one school was there found all four of the cardinal defects 
— inadequacy, defective type, poor lighting and disagreeable odors. 

Below is a summary schedule of the main sanitary defects actually 
observed in Akron schools : 

SCHEDULE OF DEFECTS ACTUALLY OBSERVED- 
GENERAL SANITATION. 



Central High School — Facilities inadequate; lighting and ventilation 
in boys' toilet room in old building is poor; type of fixtures in 
this room also defective. 

South High School — Evidence of insufficient cleaning of boys' room 
on first floor; operation apparently detective: partitions defaced. 

West High School — Indications of imperfect cleaning' of toilet rooms; 
ventilation not the best. 

Allen School — Equipment not up to date; poor light in one of the toilet 
rooms ; no outside light for emergency room on second floor. 

Bowen School — Calculation indicates that toilet provisions are not 
sufficient; trouble with some of the fixtures. (At time of inspec- 
tion this building had not been accepted by Board of Education.) 

Bryan School — Insufficient light for girls' toilet room in old building; 
equipment not up to date: ventilation not good. Bad air in boys' 
room in new building. Untidy. 

Caldwell School — Outside buildings. Clean but evidence of infrequent 
flushing. 

Crosby School — Fixtures not-modern ; air and light poor in hoys' room. 
No drinking fountain; no cabinets for individual drinking cups. 

Forest Hill School — Outside accommodations about one hundred feet 
from school. No running water in school. 

F. H. Mason School — No criticism. 

!<Yaunfelter School — Air and lighl in hoys' room poor; facilities in- 
adequate. 

Goodyear Heights — Bad design and location of toilet facilities. No 
fountains, and no cabinet tor individual drinking cups. 

Grace School — Facilities inadequate and outside building. No foun- 
tains, although suitable cabinets are provided for individual drink- 
ing cups. 

04 



Henry School — Inadequate toilet facilities according to State Code. 
Fixtures not modern; poor light and drainage in boys' room. 

Howe School — Equipment fairly modern but boys' room very deficient 
in light. 

Jennings School — No criticism. 

Kent School — Equipment not modern; drainage and lighting in girls' 
room is poor. Drainage in boys' room is bad and floor uneven. 
Location bad. 

Lane School — Bad example of interior emergency room. Water pres- 
sure not sufficient to keep drinking fountains on first and second 
floors in full operation. Undesirable (cup) type of bubbler is used. 

Leggett School — Air in boys' toilet room bad; evidence of lack of 
thoroughness in cleaning. Considerable trouble with water pres- 
sure necessitating hand operation of flushing equipment. (In- 
vestigator informed that this condition would be remedied in a 
few days.) Defective water pressure also prevents constant opera- 
tion of drinking fountains on second floor. 

Lincoln School — No criticism except that type of drinking fountain is 
not the most desirable. 

Miller School — Toilet equipment in old building not of latest design. 
Air in boys' toilet room in old building not good. Type of bubbler 
not the best. 

Perkins Normal School — All toilet facilities except for teaching staff 
are in new building. Fixtures not modern and lighting insufficient. 
No drinking fountains in building and one very objectionable 
drinking faucet installed in boys' basement. (This faucet is so 
arranged that in order to get a drink the boys must press their 
lips upon the outside surface.) Evidence of lack of thoroughness 
in cleaning new building. 

Portage Path School — Criticism applies chiefly to type of drinking foun- 
tain which encourages children to press their lips upon surface. 

Eobinson School — Only criticism applies to water pressure which is 
sometimes insufficient to operate drinking fountains and sanitary 
equipment. 

Samuel Findley School — No toilet facilities in old building. Air in 
toilet rooms in new building not satisfactory, indicating poor 
cleaning ; two fixtures out of order. 

Spicer School — No heat in toilet rooms at time of inspection. Seven 
fixtures in boys' room out of order; bad air and untidy appear- 
ance. 

Country Schools — All of these schools have primitive facilities in out- 
side building. Conditions at Lovers' Lane and Triplett bad. At 
only one of these schools (Merriman) was use of chloride of lime 
evident. 

95 



It is to be hoped that the authorities will not permit the more serious 
defects to remain against the record of the schools which are other- 
wise unobjectionable from the standpoint of the health of the children. 

It seems unnecessary to call attention in this report to the sanitary 
provisions at the Grace School. This is the sole remaining- example in 
Akron of a city school in modern surroundings with outside closets. 
In 1900, according to information received, conditions were actually 
reversed, only one school having modern sanitary conveniences. 

On April 4, 1916, residents of the neighborhood petitioned the Board 
of Education to abolish the outside closets at Grace School, but the 
Board replied (April 21) that this improvement must wait until a 
proposed annex was built. 

This would indicate a lack of proper emphasis upon school sanita- 
tion. Just why it is necessary to wait for an entire new annex before 
remedying this situation is hard to understand. Certainly a tempo- 
rary basement extension could be made which would answer the pur- 
pose until the annex is built. At the very least, the present structures 
could be altered so as to provide heat, light and running water. 

A knowledge of comparative unit cleaning costs is desirable for any 
school system in order to effect proper control of janitorial services. 
The table which follows is, of course, only an approximation as it is 
based on the assumption that half the cost of the janitorial service 
might fairly be charged to cleaning, but for comparative purposes the 
figures are sufficiently accurate. A proper accounting system, based 
on time-sheets for the janitors, would supply absolutely correct costs. 



TABLE XX. 



COMPARATIVE COST OF CLEANING, 1916-1917 
(Arranged according to Least Comparative Cost) 



Estimated 
SCHOOL Time* 

Fraunfelter 1,000 Hours 

Spicer 1,090 Hours 

Kent 1,070 Hours 

Henry 864 Hours 

Howe 1,455 Hours 

Crosby 820 Hours 

S. Findley 1,058 Hours 

Allen 763 Hours 

Miller 1,620 Hours 

Grace 590 Hours 

Lane 1,320 Hours 

Leggett 1,068 Hours 

Bryan 762 Hours 

Lincoln 664 Hours 

Portage Path 985 Hours 

Perkins Normal 825 Hours 

Robinson 1,280 Hours 

F. H. Mason 770 Hours 

Bowen 780 Hours 



One-Half Cost 


Comparative 


of Janitorial 


Hourly Cost of 


Service 


Cleaning 


$ 606.80 


$0.61 


735.00 


0.67 


727.00 


0.68 


609.80 


0.70 


1,042.50 


0.72 


605.00 


0.74 


852.20 


0.80 


647.50 


0.85 


1,455.00 


0.90 


542.40 


0.92 


1,258.10 


0.94 


1,020.00 


0.95 


866.50 


0.99 


690.00 


1.04 


1,047.00 


1.06 


880.00 


1.07 


1,387.00 


1.08 


835.00 


1.08 


900.00 


1.15 



This is the approximate number of hours estimated to be necessary to clean the building 
during the school season. Class-rooms, halls, basements and windows are included. 

96 



Comparative Hourly Cost of Cleaning 19 Schools During 1915-1916 

#t.5C 



r.40 



/io 



i.ZO 



90 



BO 



.60 



.50 



.30 



20 






< S S 






C ^ 

$ s 

^ t 






6 I 

CQ -4 



II 



97 



II. VENTILATION AND HEATING. 

1. General Discussion. 

Recent studies in ventilation, especially those conducted at Albany, 
have upset practically all previously accepted ideas as to efficient ven- 
tilation. All modern ventilating systems are based on the "chemical" 
theory that good A^entilation consists in the removal of all surplus of 
carbon-dioxide from the air so as to maintain at all times in the in- 
side air the same proportion of this gas as is found in the outside at- 
mosphere. The importance of equable temperature has also been 
recognized and, in some cases, the desirability of maintaining the rela- 
tive moistnre of the air in school-rooms at a point fairly equivalent to 
that outside the class-rooms. Equable temperature and normal hu- 
midity, particularly the latter, have in practice been considered as 
subsidiary factors indirectly related to good ventilation, but not con- 
stituent elements of it. 

Prof. Frederick S. Lee writes as follows in Science, August 11, 1916 : 

"As one result of these experiments (at Albany) there has been 
a great change in our ideas concerning the physiological action of 
atmospheric conditions. It had long been the custom to ascribe 
to chemical components of the atmosphere the bad effects of liv- 
ing in air that had already been breathed by human beings. The 
discovery of oxygen and of carbon-dioxide early in the last century 
gave a great stimulus to this notion, and it became firmly fixed in 
the minds of chemists, physiologists and physicians, as well as the 
educated masses, that air that had been breathed was vitiated 
chemically and rendered unfit for human use by the lack of oxy- 
gen, the accumulation of carbon dioxide, and of the presence of 
an organic poison of unknown nature. No sooner had this notion 
become widely accepted than the laboratories began to demon- 
strate the inadequacy of the supposed proof of the notion, and — to 
cut a long story short — we now know that, except under very un- 
usual circumstances, the harmfulness of respired air is not due to 
its chemical components. By respiration oxygen can not be re- 
duced to a deleterious proportion nor can carbon dioxide be pro- 
duced in deleterious quantity, except under very unusual condi- 
tions of living; and the organic poison of respiration has no real 
existence. The harmfulness of living in confined air is found in 
certain physical rather than chemical features — the air is too 
warm, too moist, and too still; and if it has not these physical 
features it is not harmful. 

We ;ill have sat in crowded assemblies: we all have experienced 
the hot, h ii in id. still days of an American summer. "We all know 
the effects of such air on our sensations — the general bodily dis- 
comfort, the sleepiness, the flushed face, the headache, the disin- 

98 



clination to think or to act, the general debility, the longing for 
relief. But sensations arc an inadequate measure of bodily con- 
ditions. In what respects is hot, humid, still air harmful? To 
answer this question we must consult the records of many re- 
searches, chiefly on human beings, but partly on animals, that 
have been undertaken since Hermans more than thirty years ago, 
observed that in crowded theatres and churches his own bodily 
temperature rose. The most recent of these researches is that of 
the New York State Commission on Ventilation, which has been 
in progress for the past two and one-half years and is not yet 
completed." 

The work of this Commission has, however, demonstrated that the 
percentage of carbon dioxide in the air is a comparatively unimportant 
factor, but that good ventilation depends mainly on the following 
physical, not chemical factors : 

Temperature not too high and not too low ; 

Moisture not too great and not too little ; 

Continuous movement in the air, not too violent and not too slight. 

Disregard of these factors leads to impaired ability to do work, 
physical discomfort and liability to disease. It has been shown that 
very often the operation of an electric fan in a room with an oppres- 
sive atmosphere, without change in the chemical quality of the air, 
has been sufficient to restore the working efficiency of the occupants 
of the room. 

It is not necessary here to enter into a discussion of the scientific 
basis of the "physical" theory of ventilation. It is sufficient to state 
that while the rapid changing of the air in class-rooms is desirable, 
the elements of correct temperature, normal moisture content and the 
existence of currents in all parts of class-rooms are essentials of good 
ventilation. Bearing this in mind, it is evident that even in buildings 
where there is no mechanical system, there can be no excuse for poor 
ventilation. Open windows, electric fans and evaporation pans can 
work wonders. 

Studies as to the relative efficiency of different systems as shown by 
their effect upon the health and working efficiency of occupants of 
school buildings have not been made. On account of the fact that home 
conditions vary, that the time spent in school daily is only a fractional 
part of the day, that seasons differ, and that epidemics are of frequent 
occurrence, such tests would need to be carefully planned and spread 
over a long period of time. As such tests, under actual working con- 
ditions, would be the only satisfactory tests, an attempt should be made 
to carry them out if possible in Akron. The city has many types of 
buildings and several types of heating and ventilation. The tests 
would be long but not difficult. 

99 



The tabulation below of information supplied by the principals in- 
dicates how the correlation between attendance (largely a matter of 
health) and the system of ventilation might be tested, particularly in 
buildings containing two different types of ventilation: 

ATTENDANCE OF TEACHERS AND PUPILS 

in percentage groups, for the two main types of ventilation in the 
older and newer structures. 

Teachers' Attendance 



No. of Below 
Type of Ventilation Rooms 80% 80-84% 85-89% 90-94% 95-99% 100% 



Gravity— Old Building 88 1.13% 3.4% 5.7 % 

Gravity— New Building.... 31 3.2 

Fan— Old Building 69 5.8 .... 5.8 

Fan— New Building 227 3.08 .9 1.31 

Open Window Booms 2 .... 



6.82% 


7.95% 


75 ■ 


3.2 


22.6 


71 


7.25 


18.84 


62.31 


3.08 


14.1 


77.53 
100 



Pupils' Attendance 



No. of Below 
Type of Ventilation Rooms 80% 80-84% 85-89% 90-94% 95-99% 100% 



Gravity — Old Building 88 

Gravity — New Building.... 31 

Fan — Old Building 69 

Fan— New Building 227 

Open Window Rooms 2 



2.27% 10.23%, 


53.4 % 


34.1 ' 


6.45 9.68 


54.84 


29.03 


5.8 


43.48 


50.72 


5.29 


51.1 
100 


43.61 



The record of the two open window rooms is noteworthy, as well as 
the comparative records of the gravity systems in the older schools 
and the fan systems in the newer schools. While the basis of this 
table is, of course, too narrow for drawing conclusions, the prospect 
of arriving at definite conclusions — considering attendance, health, 
scholastic records, athletic records, etc., in relation to temperature, 
humidity, cleanness of air, etc. — seems encouraging. 

2. Location of Air Inlets and Outlets in Class-rooms. 

The State law* requires that inlets shall not be less than 8 feet 
from the floor and that the bottom of outlets shall not be more than 
2 inches from the floor. The reason for these provisions is obvious. 
In order to get good circulation of air it is necessary that inlets and 
outlets shall be at considerable distances from one another and that 
the returning air shall find its way readily to the outlet. Of 438 class- 
rooms, 269 had their outlets at the floor, 163 had their outlets above 
the floor 6 inches or less (mostly less than 2 inches), 5 had outlets be- 
tween 7 and 12 inches from the floor and only 1 over a foot from the 
floor. Considering the number of old buildings in Akron this is an 
excellent record. 

Of 446 class-rooms, the distance between the bottom of the inlet and 
the bottom of the outlet was less than 6 feet in 43 rooms, from 6 to 8 
feet in 344 rooms, and over 8 feet in 59 rooms. This record is not so 
good. The placing of hot-air inlets at the floor level is always ob- 

*Throughout this report the revision quoted is that of 1915. 

100 



jectionable, except in the case of subsidiary inlets for foot warmers. 
Reports state that 16 rooms have inlets at the floor level and 38, five 
inches or less above the floor, not counting temporary annexes. These 
large figures may partly be due to misunderstanding, but some cases 
were actually noted by the observer. All cases observed, however, 
were in the old buildings. 

As will be pointed out later, more than one inlet and more than one 
outlet are usually required in order to secure good circulation of air 
and to obviate strong currents of hot air in rooms as large as class- 
rooms. The installation of extra inlets and outlets would largely off- 
set the defects noted above. 

3. Floor Space per Pupil. 

The State standards require 16 square feet per pupil in the primary 
grades, 18 in the grammar grades, and 20 in the High School. These 
provisions are no longer regarded as so important as formerly, but it 
is interesting to note that in Akron the average space per seat is 18 
square feet, that some schools provide as high as 24 feet, and that only 
one falls as low as 14.3. The space per pupil in actual attendance is, of 
course, much higher. Below is a table showing the averages for 27 of 
the school buildings (not by room but for the school buildings as 
units) : 



FLOOR AREA PER SEAT 

Number of Floor Area 

SCHOOL Floor Area Seats per Seat 

Central High 24,056 1,198 20.2 

West High 25,365 1,412 18.0— Floor area of one 

South High 22,418 1,146 19.6 room and No. of seats 

Allen 10,246 652 15.9 in one room not given. 

Bowen 11,440 564 20.3 

Brittain 4,518 188 24.0 

Bryan 14,038 828 17.0 

Caldwell 5,500 315 14.3 

Crosby 9,917 630 15.7 — Floor area not given 

Forest Hill 3,743 230 16.3 for one room. 

Frank H. Mason 12,359 844 14.6 

Fraunfelter 11,543 627 18.4 

Goodyear 2,880 154 18.7— No. of seats not given 

Grace 8,995 527 17.1 for one room. 

Henry 11,216 615 18.2 

Howe 20,878 1,083 19.3 

Jennings 13,540 754 18.0 

Kent 13,586 718 18.9 

Lane 26,469 1,414 18.7 

Leggett 17,322 1,022 16.9 

Lincoln 11,979 671 17.8 

Miller 31,595 1,515 20.8 

Perkins Normal 9,687 652 14.9— Floor area not given 

Portage Path 17,213 931 18.5 for one room. 

Robinson 24,235 1,333 18.2 

Samuel Findley 13,844 839 16.5 

Spicer 15,414 816 18.9 

393,996 21,678 18.0 

Note: Special rooms, such as Gymnasium, Kindergarten, Domestic Science, Sewing, Drawing, 
Shops, etc. not included in above. 

101 



4. Cubic Contents of Air Space per Sitting. 

The State code requires for primary grades per pupil 200 cubic feet, 
for grammar grades 225 cubic feet, for High Schools 250 cubic feet. 
These provisions cannot be regarded as of extreme importance in the 
light of recent discoveries, but it is gratifying to know that all new 
school structures in Akron are adequate in this respect and that all 
buildings have sufficient air space, other conditions being favorable. 
The following table summarizes the facts, but it should again be noted 
that not all seats are occupied all the time, so that probably under 
actual conditions nearly every regular school-room in Akron, whether 
in old or new buildings, meets the requirements of the State law. 



CUBIC FEET OF AIR SPACE PER SEAT. 

26 rooms have less than 170 cubic feet per seat. 
18 rooms have between 170-179 cubic feet per seat. 

26 rooms have between 180-189 cubic feet per seat. 
22 rooms have between 190-199 cubic feet per seat. 
30 rooms have between 200-209 cubic feet per seat. 
35 rooms have between 210-219 cubic feet per seat. 
60 rooms have between 220-229 cubic feet per seat. 
34 rooms have between 230-239 cubic feet per seat. 

49 rooms have between 240-249 cubic feet per seat. 

50 rooms have between 250-259 cubic feet per seat. 

27 rooms have between 260-269 cubic feet per seat. 
26 rooms have between 270-279 cubic feet per seat. 
65 rooms have 280 or over cubic feet per seat. 

5. Quantity of Air Supplied per Minute per Pupil. 

Excluding corridors, halls and storage closets, the State law requires 
the complete change of the air in rooms occupied by pupils at least 
six times per hour. In a room 25x30x12, housing 40 pupils, this 
would mean 22-§ cubic feet per pupil. In a room 14 x 25 x 34 1/3, with 
40 pupils, it would mean about 30 cubic feet per pupil. Thirty cubic 
feet is the standard usually set by hygienists accepting the "chemical" 
theory of ventilation. While the State standard is based on obsolescent 
theory i1 is still State law, and it is interesting to note that Akron meets 
and surpasses State standards in this respect. In some cases, in "mug- 
gy" weather, rooms ventilated and heated by the old-fashioned gravity 
system may fall somewhal below the standard, but in such weather the 
use of window ventilation — with draft deflectors if necessary — and 
electric fans would put every room in the Akron schools above sus- 
picion as to the adequacy of the air supplied per pupil. Many thought- 
ful persons are coming to believe that the best ventilation can be 
so secured in all weathers. Until the question of ventilation is settled 
on a scientific basis, we shall not know just how much of the expen- 

102 



sive modern apparatus for supplying to the class-room that good air 
which exists in unlimited quantities just outside, is really essential. 

The figures below, based on actual tests, indicate that all systems in 
use in Akron, other than gravity systems, supply about twice as much 
air as State or scientific standards require. 

Gravity systems supplied, on the average, 29.1 eu. ft. per pupil 
per minute. 

Mechanical blast systems supplied, on the average, 56.6 cu. ft. per 
pupil per minute. 

Various systems using steam supplied, on the average, 67.5 cu. ft. 
per pupil per minute. 

While it is true that air amounting to at least six times their content 
enters and leaves the class-rooms every hour, it is not true that the air 
in all parts of the school-rooms is so frequently changed. Indications 
were not lacking that there are air pockets and comparatively dead 
spaces in many class-rooms. With only one inlet and one outlet per 
room, and with currents of hot air shot into the rooms at a rapid rate, 
it could not be otherwise. The air in the spaces just back of the barrier 
shutting off the cloak-rooms from the regular class-rooms in some build- 
ings is probably not subject to rapid change. This does not affect the 
children directly but must affect the condition of the wraps. The 
difficulty, if any, could be obviated by putting open grill-work near the 
bottoms of the barriers. Stuffy spots in the regular class-rooms could 
always be dealt with by the use of electric fans. In class-rooms not 
now provided with deflectors at the intakes, conditions would be im- 
proved by their installation. 

6. Temperature. 

Careful tests were made of temperatures in individual class-rooms. 
First the temperature outside of the fresh air intake or in the fan room 
was taken, then the temperature at the inlet of the class-room, then at 
the middle, and lastly at the outlet. A study of Table XXI, which 
follows, will show that many of the temperatures of the air coming into 
class-rooms and even at the centers of class-rooms are excessive. 



103 



TABLE XXI. 
TEMPERATURE TESTS IN INDIVIDUAL CLASS-ROOMS 



Temperature outside intake 

SCHOOL or in (an room Temperature 

and At Beginning At Close of Temperature at Centre Temperature 

Room Nos. f Observation Observation at Inlet of Room at Outlet 



Jennings 37.5 40 

7 

11 

14 

21 

23 

15 

18 

West High 32 34 

45 

50 - 

39 - 

34 

30 

22 - 

25 

S. Findley ~> ,; 58 

8 

9 

12 

5 

4 

West Basement - 

Henry :;,; ;;,; 

9 

3 

i 

12 

8 - 

6 

13 (Heated by gas) Front: 71; Center: 



Spicer 33. 

7 .-.: 



17 
15 
16 



Leggett (Feb. 23) 18 

5 

24 

14 

13 

17 

KM 



93 


72 


72 


93 


74.5 


74.5 


98 


70 


70 


95 


78.5 


80 


93 


77 


78 


68 


72 


71 


86 


75.5 


75 


70 


71 


72 


S2 


70 


70 


69 


71 


70 


68 


70 


70 


71 


75 


75 


70 


7-1 


74 


72 


73 


72 


86 


71 


69 


67.5 


67 


65 


S4 


69 


67.5 


80.5 


68 


66.5 


71 


70 


69.5 


69.5 


71 


69.5 


100 


69 


69 


115 


71 


73&69 


121 


68 


04&66 


L04& 85 


71 


73 


104 


77 


74&73 


106 


72 


71 &69 


70; Window 


: 71. 




78.2 


71 


71 


89.2 


71.5 


71.2 


81.5 


72.5 


73 


90 


73.8 


72.1 


96 


73.8 


70.8 


156 


74 


72 


83 


74 


75 


71 


71 


70 


7(1 


69.5 


73' 


68.5 


69 


69 



TABLE XXI— Continued. 
TEMPERATURE TESTS IN INDIVIDUAL CLASS-ROOMS 

„ r „ nnT Temperature outside intake 

and or in fan room Temperature 

Room Nos At Beginning At Close of Temperature at Centre Temperature 

of Observation Observation at Inlet of Room at Outlet 

Leggett (March 6) 12 16 

3 .... 187 71 68 

2 .... 160 74 70 

5 .... 201 68 68 

8 .... 162 80 75 

Bowen 28.5 30.5 

6 r .... 66 69 68 

7 .... 103 77 70 

10 .... 78 70 68 

13 .... 94 70 69 

Portage Path 33 33 

10 .... 81 75 72 

13 .... 70 71 70 

8 .... 70 71 70 

17 .... 82 71 71 

31 .... 83 72 72 

20 .... 92 75 74 

23 .... 77 72 72 

26 .... 77 77 76 

"When it is borne in mind that increasing the temperature of air in- 
creases its ''hunger" for water or its relative dryness, the effect on the 
air passages of teachers and pupils is obvious. This topic will be 
further discussed under "Humidity." 

More inlets and more outlets would reduce the temperature at the 
inlets necessary to heat the rooms and would lessen the bad effects of 
hot dry currents of air moving at great speed. 

It will further be noted that a large number of the temperatures 
recorded in the center of the rooms were over 70 degrees, whereas 
class-room temperatures should be not higher than 70 degrees, or, 
better still, 68 degrees. Temperatures over 72 degrees are certainly 
harmful to teachers or children submitted to them for any length of 
time. 

As a further check on class-room temperatures, teachers were asked, 
through the Superintendent, to supply temperature data during two 
weeks in February, 1917. These were cheerfully supplied and are 
tabulated in Table XXII which follows. Temperatures between 68 
and 72 were considered as normal, although 70 is generally regarded as 
the maximum allowable temperature. This was done to allow for 
.slight unavoidable fluctuations. 

105 



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106 



Out of 27 schools, 19 recorded "highest" temperatures of over 80 
degrees. The most moderate "highest" temperature recorded was 
74 degrees. Twenty-five schools registered "lowest" temperatures be- 
low 60 degrees, and two at 60. The lowest temperature registered was 
30 degrees and the highest 90. 

7. Humidity. 

The effect of excessive humidity in hastening fatigue and of in- 
sufficient humidity in causing headache, dryness of throat surfaces, 
and restlessness, is well known to teachers of experience. In Akron 
schools, instances of the second defect are found but none of the first. 

According to the tabulation of the results of actual observations, 
the average humidity (degree of saturation) of air in the center of 
class-rooms observed for this purpose was 25.2. The gravity systems 
showed an average humidity of only 19.7 ; the non-steam using me- 
chanical systems showed an average of 27.3 ; and the steam using sys- 
tems, 28.5. These results are not strictly comparable as there were 
differences in outside temperatures and humidities. As compared with 
the amount of moisture in the outside air, however, all Ave re much too 
low. Great differences in the degree of moisture in the outside air and 
school air, continued over a long period, tend to have a serious effect 
on the throat and bronchial passages. Several rooms Avere observed 
where children showed all the symptoms Avhich arise from breathing 
OA^er-heated dry air. Several teachers seemed to be suffering from 
the same causes. It was, of course, impossible to measure the results 
in such a short period of observation, even if it Avere desirable. It is 
suggested that the Public School, Health and University authorities co- 
operate in a study of the effects of deficient humidity in class-room 
air. Such a study could not fail to reach important conclusions. 

The tables which folloAv (XXIII-A, B and C) show the degree of 
saturation of outside air with the degrees of saturation of the inside 
air after it had been passed through the various heating and ventilating 
systems. Humidity means simply the amount of Avater in a given 
A'olume of air compared with its capacity for holding Avater. In Akron 
schools, insufficient moisture is supplied to the air as it becomes heated 
to offset this increased capacity for holding moisture. It therefore 
comes into the class-rooms more avid for water than the air outside, 
and therefore tries to get moisture from the contents of the room with 
which it comes in contact. We have all seen what such air does ta 
furniture. We have not seen what it does to the tender mucous mem- 
brane of children 's mouths and throats, which render up moisture much 
more readily than desks, maps or school books. 



107 



TABLE XXin-A. 



RESULTS Or HUMIDITY TESTS 

Gravity Systems 



Date 



School 



Humidity of Humidity in Loss in Relative Moisture 
Room No. Outside Air Class-Room Actual Loss per cent 



1917 




Mar. 12 


Henry 


Mar. 12 


Henry 


Mar. 12 


Henry 


Mar. 12 


Henry 


Mar. 12 


Henry 


Mar. 12 


Henry 


Mar. 12 


Henry 



9 

3 

4 
12 

8 

6 
13* 



51% 

51 

51 

51 

51 

51 

51 



23% 

22 

25 

22 

17 

18 

40 



28% 

29 

26 

29 

34 

33 

11 



54% 

53 

49 

53 

66 

67 

20 



Average per cent of Loss in Moisture 52% 

Room No. 13 heated by gas stove. Excluding figures for this room, average per cent of 
loss in moisture 57%. 



TABLE XXIII-B. 



RESULTS OF HUMIDITY TESTS 

Mechanical Blast Systems 



Date 


School 


Room No. 


Humidity of 
Outside Air 


Humidity in 
Class-Room 


Loss in 
Actual 


Relative Moisture 
Loss per cent 


1917 














Feb. 23 


Leggett 


24 


83% 


:::,' . 


48% 


58% 


Feb. 23 


Leggett 


14 


83 


38 


45 


54 


Feb. 23 


Leggett 


13 


83 


38.5 


44.5 


54 


Feb. 23 


Leggett 


. 17 


83 


42 


41 


50 


Mar. 9 


Portage Path 


10 


70 


27 


43 


61 


Mar. 9 


Portage Path 


13 


70 


25 


45 


60 


Mar. 9 


Portage Path 


8 


70 


22 


48 


70 


Mar. 9 


Portage Path 


17 


70 


20 


50 


71 


Mar. 9 


Portage Path 


31 


70 


21 


49 


70 


Mar. 9 


Portage Path 


20 


70 


21 


49 


70 


Mar. 9 


Portage Path 


23 


70 


24 


46 


66 


Mar. 9 


Portage Path 


26 


70 


26 


44 


63 


Average 


per cent of Loss in 


Moisture 











108 



TABLE XXIII-C. 



RESULTS OF HUMIDITY TESTS 
Split Steam Systems 











Humidity of 


Humidity in 


Loss in '. 


Relative Moisture 


Date 


School 


Room No. 


Outside Air 


Class- Room 


Actual 


Loss per cent 


1917 
















Feb. 26 


S. Findley 




8 


63% 


38% 


25% 


40% 


Feb. 26 


S. Findley 




9 


63 


46 


17 


24 


Feb. 26 


S. Findley 




12 


63 


45 


18 


25 


Feb. 26 


S. Findley 




5 


63 


47 


16 


23 


Feb. 26 


S. Findley 




4 


63 


50 


13 


21 


Feb. 26 


S. Findley 


West 


Base 


't 63 


49 


14 


22 


Mar. 15 


West High 




45 


63 


30 


33 


52 


Mar. 15 


West High 




50 


63 


24 


39 


38 


Mar. 15 


West High 




39 


63 


23 


40 


63 


Mar. 15 


West High 




34 


63 


20 


43 


68 


Mar. 15 


West High 




30 


63 


18 


45 


71 


Mar. 15 


West High 




22 


63 


20 


43 


58 


Mar. 15 


West High 




25 


63 


20 


43 


58 


Mar. 16 


Jennings 




7 


57.5 


21 


36.5 


64 


Mar. 16 


Jennings 




11 


57.5 


20.5 


37 


64 


Mar. 16 


Jennings 




14 


57.5 


20 


37.5 


65 


Mar. 16 


Jennings 




21 


57.5 


17.5 


40 


70 


Mar. 16 


Jennings 




23 


57.5 


17 


40.5 


71 


Mar. 16 


Jennings 




15 


57.5 


23 


34.5 


60 


Mar. 16 


Jennings 




18 


57.5 


21.5 


36 


63 


Average per 


cent of Loss 


in Moisture 








51% 



It will be noted that in the gravity systems the air became 52% 
dryer, i. e. more able to take up water; in the mechanical blast systems 
62% ; and in the split steam systems 51%. 

Unless it can be shown conclusively that arrangements can be made 
to properly humidify the air from mechanical blast systems, it is 
strongly recommended that no payments be made on contracts now 
outstanding for the installation of such systems, until tests over a con- 
siderable period have demonstrated their efficiency. 

8. Dust and Smoke. 

During the process of the study tests were made, by the standard 
method, of the amount of dust in the air of class-rooms. Petri dishes 
covered with gelatine were exposed, often in two different places, in 
each class-room tested. In most cases exposure was for a full day. 
Bacteriological tests were also made but as the results were not partic- 
ularly significant they were discontinued. Occasional evidence of dis- 
ease bacteria was discovered including some which may be regarded as 
the probable cause of throat infections. This fact, however, is not of 
great importance. The results of the dust tests are more significant, 
as irritation of the mucous membrane of throat, nose and bronchial 
tabes by smoke and dust may be a predisposing cause of serious in- 
fections. 

The cuts which follow are reproductions of dust exposures taken in 
two schools. 

109 



Reproduction of Dust Exposure 
Taken in the Fan Room of the Bowen School. 

(Slightly enlarged.) 




Reproduction of Dust Exposure 
Taken in the Fan Room of the Jennings School. 

(Slightly enlarged.) 





110 



In Table XXIV which follows are given estimates — made as care- 
fully as possible by the aid of the microscope — of the number of parti- 
cles on the various exposures. The numbers in Columns I, II and III 
represent the number of particles of three different sizes — all small — 
the third being the largest. 



NOTE 

Size 
Size 



Standard of Measurement of Dust Particles. 

I — less than 250 standard units, or .1 square millimeter. 
II — between 250 and 1250 standard units, or between .1 and 
.5 square millimeters. 
Size III — larger than 1250 standard units, or .5 square millimeters. 

















TABLE 


XXIV. 










DUST PARTICLES IN SCHOOL AIR 


















Length of 


Area Exposed 


No. of Dust Particles 


School 




Date 




Room 


Exposure 


(Sq. in.) 


I. 


II. 


III. 






1917 














Spicer 




Feb. 


20 


Intake 


Day 


19.35 


200,400 


18,000 





Spicer 




Feb. 


20 


7 


1 hr. 


19.35 


37,600 








Spicer 




Feb. 


20 


8 


1 hr. 


19.35 


70,000 


400 


400 


Spicer 




Feb. 


20 


17 


1| hrs. 


19.35 


206,400 


2,000 





Spicer 




Feb. 


20 


15 


ii in-. 


19.35 


S7,600 


3,200 





Spicer 




Feb. 


20 


16 


12 hrs. 


19.35 


96,000 


800 





Leggett 




Feb. 


23 


Intake 


Day 


19.35 


264,000 


1,200 





Leggett 




Feb. 


23 


5 


Dav 


19.35 


239,200 


400 


400 


Leggett 




Feb. 


23 


24 


Day 


19.35 


185,600 








Leggett 




Feb. 


23 


14 


Day 


19.35 


214,800 


800 





Leggett 




Feb. 


23 


13 


Day 


19.35 


238,000 








Leggett 




Feb. 


23 


17 


Day 


19.35 


243,200 


1,200 





Leggett 




Feb. 


23 


3 


Day 


19.35 


220,800 








Leggett 




Feb. 


23 


8 


Day 


19.35 


394,400 








Leggett 




Feb. 


23 


2 


Day 


19.35 


242,000 








S. Findl 


ev 


Feb. 


26 


Intake 


Day 


ID.:;;. 


2,328,000 


400 





S. Findley 


Feb. 


26 


8 


Day 


L9.35 


582,400 








S. Findley 


Feb. 


26 


9 


Day 


19.35 


748,800 


800 





S. Findley 


Feb. 


26 


12 


Day 


19.35 


620,400 








S. Findl 


ey 


Feb. 


26 


5 


Day 


19.35 


718,400 


400 





S. Findley 


Feb. 


26 


4 


Day 


19.35 


620,800 


400 


400 


S. Findley 


Feb. 


26 


West Basement 


Day 


19.35 


715,200 








Bo wen 




Mar. 


2 


Intake 


Day 


19.35 


3,676,000 


2,800 


8,000 


Bowen 




Mar. 


2 


6 


Day 


19.35 


68,400 








Bowen 




Mar. 


o 


13 


Day 


19.35 


249,200 


400 





Bowen 




Mar. 


o 


18 


Day 


L9.35 


355,200 


1,200 





Bowen 




Mar. 


2 


7 


Day 


19.35 


419,600 


800 





Bowen 




Mar. 


2 


2 


Day 


19.35 


473,600 


1,600 





Portage 


Path 


Mar. 


9 


Inside of new 




















intake 


Day 


11.05 


1,616,000 


4,000 


800 


Portage 


Path 


Mar. 


9 


10 


Dav 


11.05 


397,200 








Portage 


Path 


Mar. 


9 


13 


Day 


11.05 


230,800 


1,600 





Portage 


Path 


Mar. 


9 


8 


Day 


11.05 


1 sC.,800 


400 





Portage 


Path 


Mar. 


9 


17 


Day 


11.05 


85,600 


800 





Portage 


Path 


Mar. 


9 


31 


Day 


11.0.1 


122,400 


400 





Portage 


Path 


Mar. 


9 


20 


Day 


11.05 


200,000 


400 





Portage 


Path 


Mar. 


9 


23 


Day 


11.05 


114,400 


1,600 





Portage 


Path 


Mar. 


9 


26 


Day 


11.05 


439,600 









111 



TABLE XXIV— Continued. 
DUST PARTICLES IN SCHOOL AIR 



School 



Date 



Room 



Length of Area Exposed 
Exposure (Sq. in.) 



No. of Dust Pa rticles 
II. 



I. 



III. 



Portage Path 



Portage 
Portage 
Portage 
Portage 
Portage 
Portage 
Portage 
Portage 

Henry 
Henry 
Henry 
Henry 
Henry 
Henry 
Henry 
Henry 
Henry 



Path 
Path 
Path 
Path 
Path 
Path 
Path 
Path 



West 
West 
West 
West 
West 
West 
West 
West 
West 



High 
High 
High 
High 
High 
High 
High 
High 
High 



Jennings 

Jennings 
Jennings 
Jennings 
Jennings 
Jennings 
Jennings 
Jennings 



1917 

Mar. 9 Outside of new 

intake 

Mar. 9 10 

Mar. 9 13 
Mar. 9 8 

Mar. 9 17 

Mar. 9 31 

Mar. 9 20 

Mar. 9 23 

Mar. 9 26 

Mar. 12 West side intake 

Mar. 12 South side intake 

Mar. 12 9 

Mar. 12 3 

Mar. 12 4 

Mar. 12 12 

Mar. 12 8 

Mar. 12 6 

Mar. 12 13 

Mar. 15 North East intake 

Mar. 15 West intake 

Mar. 15 45 

Mar. 15 50 

Mar. 15 39 

Mar. 15 34 

Mar. 15 30 

Mar. 15 22 

Mar. 15 25 

Mar. 16 Intake 



Mar. 16 
Mar. 16 
Mar. 16 
Mar. 16 
Mar. 16 
Mar. 16 
Mar. 16 



7 
11 
14 
21 
23 
15 
18 



Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 

Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 

Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 

Day 

Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 
Day 



8.3 

8.3 
8.3 
8.3 
8.3 
8.3 
8.3 
8.3 
8.3 

11.05 

8.3 
19.35 

8.3 
19.35 
19.35 
19.35 
19.35 
19.35 

19.35 
19.35 
19.35 
19.35 
19.35 
19.35 
19.35 
19.35 
19.35 

19.35 

19.35 
19.35 
19.35 
19.3o 
19.35 
19.35 
19.35 



368,000 
154,800 
132,400 
342,800 
149,600 
107,600 
211,200 
248,400 
274,800 

947,200 
649,600 
200,000 

83,600 
361,600 

15,600 
444,400 
552,800 
368,000 

12,074,000 
1,592,000 
80,400 
252,000 
436,400 
186,000 
447,600 
406.800 
610,800 



1,200 
400 
400 

1,200 



400 

1,600 
400 
400 

3,200 

1,200 

800 

800 

400 

400 

1,600 

1,600 





801,600 
986,400 
591,200 
461,200 
449,600 
360,400 
203,600 



Innum- 
erable 
400 
1,200 

800 
800 

800 








400 




800 











17,600 


2,000 


1,600 





400 





800 

















1,600 





1,200 


400 


5,600 


5,600 



400 





400 




Tn this connection the soot flares about the air inlets in many schools 
are significant. Among the new schools, rather bad cases were noticed 
in the Miller, Portage Path and Robinson. It would be difficult to say 
which, among the older schools, were worst in this respect. 

Dresslar writes as follows : 

"Architects and school officers too frequently give no thought to 
the source from which fresh air is to be supplied until the site for 
a building is chosen, the plans drawn, and the building is in pro- 
cess of construction. Then it is usually too late to make amends.* 

''I have in mind at this time an expensive and, in the main, well-planned school 
building, situated near a busy street, from which clouds of dust are stirred up at 
frequent intervals and, to make matters worse, the architect actually set the fans 
to draw the air from the street side of the building, and near the ground at that." 

112 



No janitor will be able to keep such a building clean, until some 
method of filtering the dust out of the air is installed, or unless 
the intake for the fresh air is moved to the rear of the building 
and high above the level of the street. But even if the janitor can 
tind a way to remove the dust at the close of each day, during the 
school session the children must breathe dirty air and suffer the 
consequences." 

The least that can be done in Akron is to have all air drawn into 
school buildings taken from a considerable height above the ground 
and at a point where it will not be contaminated by the smoke of the 
school buildings themselves. If it is decided that nothing can be done 
to eradicate the general smoke nuisance in the city, air washing devices 
should be installed so that school children could get pure air at least 
five hours out of the twenty-four. 



III. LIGHTING. 

The Akron schools probably stand higher in the natural lighting of 
their school-rooms than in any other department of hygiene. The 
principle of lighting all class-rooms from one side only has been defi- 
nitely adopted. In new buildings the piers between the windows 
are narrow and windows reach to, or almost to, the ceiling. All this 
is in strict conformity with modern practice. 

The State law requires that the window area shall be one-sixth of 
the floor area in class-rooms. It is generally accepted among hygienists 
that the ratio of window area to floor area should be not less than 
one to five. The conditions in Akron for the 450 class-rooms reported 
on are as follows : 

In 17. the window area was more than 1/3 of the floor area. 

In 40, the window area was between 1/4 and 1/3 of the floor area. 

In 115, the window area was between 1/5 and 1/4 of the floor area. 

In 7, the window area was exactly 1/5 of the floor area. 

In 128, the window area was less than 1/5 but more than 1/6 of the floor 

area. 
In 11, the window area was exactly 1/6 of the floor area. 
In 55, the window area was less than 1/6 but more than 1/7 of the 

floor area. 
In 77, the window area was less than 1/7 of the floor area. 

By the higher standard 179 class-rooms are well lighted and 128 
might be regarded as fairly well lighted. By the legal standard 318 
out of 450 are well lighted and 55 others might be considered as pass- 
able if other lighting conditions are good. 

Tt is important that cross lights should be avoided in class-rooms 
where ordinary academic work is performed. Windows on two sides 
of the room offend somewhat against this canon, windows on three 
sides are highly objectionable, and windows on four sides are almost 
intolerable — that is unless some are covered by some opaque material. 

113 



Of the 499 school-rooms for which facts were given on this point : 
255 reported windows on one side only. 
233 reported windows on two sides only. 
9 reported windows on three sides. 
2 reported windows on four sides. 

This is an excellent record and will yearly grow better under the 
existing policy of the Board. 

The orientation of rooms, the direction in which their windows face, 
is also important. A north light is suitable only to such work as Art 
and Manual Training. A southern exposure is bad because it sub- 
jects the rooms to the direct rays of the sun for too long a period in the 
school day. If the shades are pulled down, the light is insufficient. 
If left up, the glare from polished surfaces is very distracting. East- 
ern and western exposures are best for most class-rooms. 

In 107 class-rooms the main light for the pupils — that coming 

over the left shoulder — is from the west ; 
In 108, from the east; 
In 128, from the north ; and 
In 130, from the south. 

In almost half of these rooms light comes from other quarters also, 
so that in many rooms — although the pupils' best light may come from 
the west or east — other light may come from the south. It is recom- 
mended that in all future construction arrangements be made, wher- 
ever possible, to supply light to regular class-rooms from the east 
or west only. An eastern exposure is deprecated by some on the 
ground that it makes map-work difficult for children. 

No careful study was made of the artificial lighting of the rooms 
and corridors. One statement that it was insufficient in one school 
was made to the observer. High Schools are apparently well supplied 
with artificial lights. It is evident, however, that if the school day be 
extended and social center work extensively introduced, the whole 
question of sufficient artificial lighting will have to be gone into 
thoroughly. This should be the work of an Assistant Superintendent 
in charge of social and other specialized activities. 

In the newer buildings the tops of windows are flush or almost flush 
with the ceiling. This is in accordance with the best practice, as for 
corresponding areas, the light coming in from the top of the window 
is much more effective than that coming in at the bottom. 

In 55 rooms, the window tops were less than 6 inches from the ceil- 
ing ; in 271 between 6 and 12 inches from the ceiling ; and in 134, over 
a foot from the ceiling. The State law requires that window tops 
shall not be placed more than 8 inches below the minimum ceiling 
height established by law. This varies with the width of the room, 
so- that windows may be more than S inches from the ceiling, where 
these are high, and still conform t<> the law. For heights above the 
State minimum the law should not allow more than an eight-inch lee- 
way. Four inches would be better. 

114 



IV. CLOAK-ROOMS. 

The State law allows cloaks and wraps to be kept either in separate 
cloak-rooms or in parts of the class-room partially separated from the 
class-room proper. In both cases, cloak-room spaces must be ventilated. 
The great majority of these in Akron — all in the new buildings — con- 
form to the State law. Out of 465 class-rooms noted, 38 have cloak- 
room space in halls or corridors, 184 in separate cloak-rooms, and 243 
in partially separated areas of the class-rooms. No unpleasant odors 
resulting from the presence of outer clothing were noticed in class- 
rooms which had cloak-room spaces and there is no evidence that this 
method of taking care of wraps is dangerous. As pointed out before, 
however, the ventilation of the space just back of the semi-partition 
is probably defective and possibly could be improved by the substitu- 
tion of open grilling for solid wood work in the screen. The best argu- 
ments used for the semi-detached cloak-room method are economy and 
ease of discipline. The latter should not be considered. Children 
should be trained to control their own actions in school cloak-rooms as 
they would in those of private homes. Discipline which cannot effect 
this can have little effect on active life in the world. There should, of 
course, be wash basins in connection with every room. These are best 
placed in separate cloak-rooms. In some of the cloak-room spaces, 
clothes were observed hanging so thickly over the outlets as to almost 
completely obscure them. The writer cannot refrain from stating his 
opinion that the separate cloak-room is preferable from the standpoints 
of aesthetics and utility and perhaps from that of health. 

V. SEATING. 

Exclusive of kindergartens and special rooms, there are 21,678 sit- 
tings* in the Akron public schools. Of these only 975 are ad- 
justable. This is not so serious as it seems, as each room has several 
sizes of seats and desks. Unless adjustable seats are frequently ad- 
justed they are worse than useless and sittings of assorted sizes may 
be so used as to fill all practical needs. In some schools foot-rests 
are in use. "With a shift or a modified platoon system, or where social 
center work is carried on extensively, the adjustability of seats is of 
no significance, and in the home where children spend more time than 
in school, adjustable seats are not in use. From a practical standpoint, 
therefore, and in schools where discipline is not artificially rigid, sit- 
tings of carefully assorted sizes meet sufficiently well all important 
needs. 

VI. CLEANING OF ROOMS. 

The school-rooms of Akron, as a whole, are undoubtedly kept in 
good sanitary condition, especially if the difficulties caretakers must 
have, resulting from the smoke and dust nuisances, be considered. 
There was scarcely any indication of incompetence, carelessness or 
indolence on the part of the caretaking force. 

*It may be of interest in this connection to note that the total enrollment during the 
first half of 1916-1917 was 21,987, and the average daily attendance, 19,090. It is evident 
that even allowing for seats in special rooms, the margin of unoccupied seats cannot be large. 

115 



Four school-rooms were reported to be thoroughly scrubbed or 
cleaned more than six times a year; 51, four times; 333, three times; 
51, twice ; and 4, once. 

Of 496 school-rooms reported on as to method of sweeping, 261 used 
a vacuum cleaner; 231, the brush broom; and 4, other appliances. 
Akron is to be congratulated on its policy of installing vacuum 
cleaners in all buildings where practicable. 

In 467 class-rooms, daily sweeping was reported. Four were swept 
less frequently. Daily dustings were the practice in 406 rooms, less 
frequent dustings in 61. 

Fifty rooms were swept in the morning ; 145 at noon ; and 260 at 
night. Three hundred and eight were dusted in the morning; 60 at 
noon ; and 67 at night. It would seem that the prevailing practice is 
to sweep at night and dust in the morning. Unless special circum- 
stances forbid, this would seem to be the best way except perhaps where 
vacuum cleaners are used. In all buildings or wings where vacuum 
cleaners are not available, some sweeping mixture, such as oiled saw- 
dust, is used. In dusting, oiled cloths are used throughout except in 
19 cases. In 18 cases dust chasers, otherwise called feather dusters, 
are reported to be in use. A feather duster should not be permitted in 
a school building. 

The schools of Akron are putting up a brave fight against the inva- 
sion of dust and dirt from outside and are using thoroughly efficient 
methods. 

VII. MISCELLANEOUS. 

On the whole, the class-rooms of the schools in Akron are roomy. 
Some are larger than is economically desirable. Some are wider 
than they should be for efficient lighting of black-board surfaces. 
Some are -too long for distinct hearing except at the abuse of the 
teacher's voice. The ceilings are sufficiently high, only 61 being less 
than 12 feet. Three hundred and eighty-seven are between 12 and 14 
feet ; and 20 are more than 14 feet high. Ten thousand cubic feet is a 
fair size for a class-room not overcrowded with pupils. Those used for 
individual instruction and other special work may be much less. 
Akron has : 

1 class-room of between 3,000 to 4,000 cubic feet 

2 class-rooms of between 4,000 to 5,000 cubic feet 

10 class-rooms of between 5,000 to . 6,000 cubic feet 

11 class-rooms of between 6,000 to 7,000 cubic feet 
11 class-rooms of between 7,000 to 8,000 cubic feet 
38 class-rooms of between 8,000 to 9,000 cubic feet 
76 class-rooms of between 9,000 to 10,000 cubic feet 
97 class-rooms of between 10,000 to 11,000 cubic feet 
90 class-rooms of between 11,000 to 12,000 cubic feet 
96 class-rooms of between 12,000 to 13,000 cubic feet 
22 class-rooms of between 13,000 to 14,000 cubic feet 

6 class-rooms of between 14,000 to 15,000 cubic feet 

116 



8 class-rooms of between 15,000 to 16,000 cubic feet 

1 class-room of between 16,000 to 17,000 cubic feet 

2 class-rooms of between 17,000 to 18,000 cubic feet 

Drinking water arrangements are, on the whole, satisfactory. In 
some cases, however, the bubblers in use are hardly, if any, less insani- 
tary than the common drinking cup. Where there are no bubblers, 
dust proof containers for individual cups are sometimes lacking. De- 
tails are given in the list of sanitary defects on Page 94. The best form 
of drinking fountain should be selected, installed wherever possible, 
kept in good working condition, and supplied with water under suffi- 
cient pressure. Infection through the mouth and alimentary tract 
is more common than infection through the air passages. 



VIII. A SCHOOL BUILDING POLICY FOR AKRON. 

Outside of its congested areas in the "old" city, Akron can adopt al- 
most any policy of school building and administration it desires. But 
even Akron is not homogeneous as to racial origin, cultural inheritance, 
economic outlook, or social ideals. Its school organization should be 
as varied as the environment demands. Uniformity kills, equivalence 
in variety makes alive. The children of Akron do not all start at the 
same place, neither should their school life start at the same place. 
They will not enter active life at the same place, so they should not 
leave school with the same equipment. Throughout the twelve years 
of school life the courses of study and method of organization should 
vary with the prevailing types in different localities, and the chief 
variants in the same locality. 

There are five general types of organization which may be consid- 
ered for Akron. These are : 

1. The large elementary school, self-contained, with eight grades 
and tributary, with other elementary schools of the same rank, 
to a four-year High School; 

2. The large elementary school, with all grades, having smaller 
elementary schools of six grades grouped around it and sending 
to it all children when promoted from the sixth grade; 

3. A group of smaller elementary schools with not more than six 
grades, grouped around and tributary 1 to a Junior High School 
of three grades, itself tributary, with other similar schools, to a 
Senior High School of three grades; 

4. A combined elementary and high school with all grades from 
the first to the twelfth, both inclusive; 

5. A series of elementary or elementary and high school units 
grouped around a central building for administration and with 
rooms for teaching special subjects needing expensive equip- 
ment. 

117 



Type 1. 

This type is common in Akron, in fact it is the basis of the Akron 
organization. No school of this type is complete without a play-ground 
of at least five acres, allowing opportunity for free play in the large 
group games of both boys and girls. It should also have an auditorium 
suitable not only for school but for community purposes. Its gym- 
nasium should be large and well equipped with simple apparatus and 
shower baths. If possible there should be a swimming pool in connec- 
tion. Provision should be made for wood-working and other forms of 
manual training for boys ; cooking, sewing and other domestic arts for 
girls. This provision should be sufficient to give at least two hours 
per week to all boys and girls in Grades 7 and 8 and all over-age boys 
and girls in lower grades as soon as they reach the age of twelve. 

The buildings should be of the unit type capable of indefinite ex- 
pansion. All structures should be of fire-proof construction. Old 
buildings should be equipped with thoroughly safe and usable fire 
escapes. 

This type will remain for a long time in the already built up parts 
of the Akron system except where old buildings are to be torn down 
and new ones erected. All schools of Type 1 should be brought 
thoroughly up-to-date in every particular. They could be operated on 
the shift plan if necessary and be made thoroughly efficient in every 
respect. 

Type 2. 

This type, in modified form, is already in operation in parts of 
Akron. To be efficient the tributary schools should have grounds of 
not less than two acres and the central school of not less than five 
acres. The central school should have all the provisions in special 
plant and equipment outlined in Type 1. Such a school, or any part 
of it, might be operated on the shift plan. In the congested part of the 
city this type offers good promise for the future, as small tributary 
schools could be erected in various localities without too great expense 
for grounds. This type can be made thoroughly efficient. 

Type 3. 

This type is not found in Akron, although the Jennings School 
might be developed into a pure Junior High School, into a regular 
High School, or a combined six-year High School with tributary ele- 
mentary schools of six grades in its vicinity. The Junior High School 
type of organization provides for elementary schools of at least six 
grades, Junior High Schools of three grades, and Senior High Schools 
of three grades. This type, which should have all the plant and equip- 
ment outlined for Type 1, offers great promise for future school de- 
velopment particularly in the more thickly settled districts and in 
districts where there is a net work of car-tracks which young children 
would have to cross. The six-grade schools would require two-acre 
play-grounds and the Junior and Senior High Schools at least five 
acres each. The advantages of this type are these : 

118 



1 The first six grades can be taught in buildings without expen- 
sive equipment for special subjects, such subjects requiring little 
costly apparatus in lower grades if properly taught; 

2. More centers of community interest are established and thus a 
greater part of the population is reached ; 

3. Young children do not have to travel far ; 

4. The Junior High School provides a transition between the ele- 
mentary school and the Senior High School, so that depart- 
mentalizing can be introduced gradually in the school life of 
children, and so that the disciplinary break will not be so great ; 

5. The Junior High School corresponds to a real stage in child de- 
velopment which demands different treatment in discipline and 
mode of presentation ; 

6. The Junior High School provides an opportunity for children who 
do not intend to complete the High School course, to receive a 
pre-vocational training siiitable to their needs; 

7. The Senior High School receives from the Junior High School 
pupils better prepared for High School life than they could pos- 
sibly be from a regulation elementary school ; 

8. The Senior High School is relieved by the subtraction of over 
one-quarter of its pupils, so that buildings becoming out-grown 
may again become amply sufficient; 

9. Senior High Schools will find it possible to put in still further 
special equipment; 

10. The tendency is to encourage more children to take a High 
School course, particularly if High Schools offer vocational or 
pre-vocational courses ; 

11. Any stage in this type of organization may be administered on 
the shift, modified platoon, or departmental systems, if desired. 

Type 4. 

This type is not found in Akron although the Jennings, having ten 
grades, approximates it. It is suitable for any large settlement rather 
widely separated from the city proper. Its course may be divided into 
six elementary years, three intermediate years and three High School 
years, or the division may be six and six, or eight and four years. 
This type is said to encourage children to complete the full course. It 
certainly does not artificially accentuate the completion of some part 
of the course, which is true at present of most school systems. On ac- 
count of differences between the discipline required for children of dif- 
ferent grades this type offers disciplinary difficulties. Shift or modi- 
fied platoon systems would be more difficult to operate without con- 
fusion than in other types. The same special rooms and equipment 
are necessary for this type as are outlined for Type 1. From five to 
ten acres of ground would be required. 

119 



Type 5. 

The separate unit type with central building: 

This type would require ten or fifteen acres of ground. In the 
center would be an administration building which would also contain 
a large auditorium, a large gymnasium, adequate shower baths and a 
swimming pool. The rooms and equipment necessary for the various 
manual training and domestic art subjects should also be located in 
this building, as well as the heating plant for the group. Around the 
sides of the site could be located distinct units, each with a sub-princi- 
pal. Several of these units would be six-grade elementary units, one 
would be a Junior High School, and — if local conditions made it de- 
sirable—one could be a Senior High School. This type of organiza- 
tion is common in private secondary schools and in Universities. 

It allows for differences in discipline and differentiation in courses 
of study for different types of pupil. It would have the advantage 
that Type 4 has of stimulating the ambition of children to complete 
the course. From the standpoint of capital cost and upkeep of buildings 
it would be economical. It would facilitate supervision and would 
increase the percentage of men in the service as would Type 3. The 
interior court could be divided into four play-grounds for different 
types of play and different ages of pupils. 

The continuous use of extensive special plant and equipment would 
be insured and regular class-rooms, when not occupied by regular 
classes, could be used to advantage for instruction of exceptional 
children. 

This type would perhaps do more than any other to awaken com- 
munity pride. It is, however, especially adapted to semi-detached com- 
munities, with good roads and sidewalks, with no car-tracks, and so 
thickly settled as not to require long walks for young children. 

It will be noted that in all these types provision is made for instruc- 
tion in swimming. So much has been said as to possible contamination 
from swimming pools that a letter from the Assistant Physical Di- 
rector of the Toronto Young Men's Christian Association is included, 
with tests of the local Department of Health : 

Toronto, April 5th, 1917. 

"Regarding our swimming plunge, I herewith submit the following 
information regarding same: 

Size of plunge — length, 75 ft.; width. 25 ft.; depth at shallow end, 
3 ft.; depth, 8 ft, 8 in., twenty feel from deepest end; depth at deepest 
end, 5 ft, 10 in. 

Capacity in Imperial gallons — 90,000. 

Filtration — We have two filters with continuous filtration, sand, 
charcoal, alum and chlorine. Water is run off once a month and 
changed. 

Highest number of soldiers using plunge per week _ 16,125 

Average number of soldiers using plunge per week 2,000 

Average number of members using plunge per week, not includ- 
ing soldiers 2,500 

120 



Every person is required to have a thorough shower bath before 
using the plunge. 

Bathing suits prohibited for sanitary and hygienic reasons. 

No person is allowed to use the plunge who shows signs of having 
any kind of skin disease. 

There is no comparison to be made between the purity of our plunge 
water and unfiltered lake water. The statements of the Health authori- 
ties go to show that the plunge water compares very favorably with 
the city's drinking water. Enclosed you will find copies of two tests 
taken by the Health authorities. 

We have not had one known case of infection from our plunge since 
the opening of the building in September, 1913. 

Trusting this is the information you require, 

Sincerely, 
(Signed) WM. WINTERBURN, 

Assistant Physical Director.'" 

Copies of Tests. 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH. 
Mr. F. Smith, 

Physical Director, Central Y. M. C. A., 
College Street, Toronto. 

Dear Sir : — 

The two specimens of water from your plunge tank examined re- 
cently, show results as follows : 

Sample Bacteria per c. c. B. Coli 1 c. c. 

Plunge tank before ehlorination 23,000 Absent 

Plunge tank during or after ehlorination 19 Absent 

Very sincerely, 
(Signed) GEO. G. NASMITH, 

Director of Laboratories. 



DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH. 
Mr. F. Smith, 

Physical Director, Central Y. M. C. A., 
College Street, Toronto. 

Dear Sir : — 

The two water specimens taken from your plunge tank on the 5th 
inst., give, on bacteriological examination, results as follows : 

Red Colonies per c. c. 

Bacteria per on neutral red B. Coli 1 c. c. 

Sample c. c. on agar bile salt agar Lactose Bile 

North End 168 1 Absent 

South End 220 1 Absent 

This water is perfectly safe for the purpose to which it is put. 

Very sincerely, 

(Signed) F. ADAMS, 
Acting Director of Laboratories. 

121 



It may be said that probably no plunge or swimming pool in 
America has been submitted to the test the Toronto Y. M. C. A. plunge 
has since the beginning of the war. 

There can be no doubt that a plunge, properly cared for, is safer for 
bathing purposes from the standpoint of possible infection than most 
lakes and rivers and even than some water supplies. 

No matter what type or types of school be adopted, it should be 
recognized that a sound body is the first consideration, being basal 
to the most efficient mind and to the highest type of citizenship. Prin- 
cipals and teachers in Akron recognize the handicap under which some 
existing schools arc working. One principal writes as follows: 

"I think no school, when it is avoidable, should be kept on as noisy 
and dusty a corner or location as the one where our school is 
located. Street cars and steam cars make a continual confusing 
noise ; the windows must be open for ventilation and, while teach- 
ers and pupils seem to be happy in their Avork, it is much harder 
to preserve a sweet temper and a pleasant tone of voice. In time, 
this site can be sold for more than enough to build a modern build- 
ing in a good location." 



It is recommended that a joint conference of the Board of Educa- 
tion, the professional staff of the schools (superintendent, supervisors, 
principals and teachers), Chamber of Commerce and other citizen 
organizations take steps to lay out in detail for Akron a plan for diversi- 
fied school construction in desirable localities. 



122 



PART C 

WHAT THE SCHOOL REVENUE BUYS 
FOR THE BOYS AND GIRLS OF AKRON, 



I. WHAT IS TAUGHT IN THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS OF 

AKRON. 

1. General. 

The introductory suggestions of the official Course of Study and 
Manual of Instruction for the public schools of Akron is worthy of the 
careful study of every parent in Akron who has children in the 
schools and of every citizen who has the interests of the city at heart. 
The measure of success of the administration of the schools might well 
be the degree with which the standards set up in the sixteen para- 
graphs of this introduction are realized in actual practice. 

The fundamental organization of the Course of Study is best set 
forth in the following excerpt from paragraphs 7 and 8 : 

' ' 7. The great purpose of this Course of Study should be to select 
from different phases of the environment of our children those 
which are most valuable, educationally and practically: to 
organize into 'branches of study'; and to assign them to the 
several periods of the development of the children of school age, 
so that they may be brought into the children's lives." 
' ' 8. The following analysis is intended to show the classes into 
which the environment of the child is divided and the branches 
of school study representing each class. If it is true that the 
total of an individual's environment is acted upon by his mind 
in the act of becoming- educated, then every class of environment 
should be represented in the Course of Study for the schools : 

WORLD (Action and Eeaction — Impression and Expression). 
I. OF NATURE. 



1. Inorgj 


anic. 


(1) 


Mathematics. 

a. Arithmetic. 

b. Mathematical Geography. 

c. Constructive Drawing. 

d. Algebra. 

e. Geometry. 


(2) 


Physical Science. 

a. Observation Lessons (in part) 

b. Physical Geography (in part) 

c. Physics. 

d. Chemistry. 

e. Home Economics (in part). 



123 



Organic. 

a. Nature Lessons (in part). 

b. Botany. 

c. Physiology (Physical Culture). 

d. Physical Geography (in part), 

e. Home Economics (in part). 



II. OF MAN. 

1. Depending Upon Thinking Power (Theoretical). 

a. Phonics. 

b. Word Drill. 

c. Language Lessons (for form). 

d. Penmanship. 

e. Grammar. 

f. Rhetoric. 

g. Latin, German, etc. 
h. Logic. 

i. Psychology, 
j. Philosophy. 

2. Depending Upon Will Power (Practical). 

a. Political and Industrial Geography. 

b. Fable and Folk Story. 

c. History-Story and Biography. 

d. History. 

e. Civil Government. 

f. Political Science. 

3. Depending Upon Aesthetic Power (Artistic). 

a. Reading (in part). 

b. Literature. 

c. Music. 

d. Representation and Decoration Drawing. 

e. Color (Nature Lessons). 

f. Picture Study." 

!t will be seen that the world in which the children live, the world 
of Nature and of Man, is made the basis for the Course of Study. 
Any child who succeeds in taking the whole course from the kinder- 
garten to graduation from the High School must, if the teachers do 
their share and the Board of Education provides the necessary facili- 
ties, establish vital relations with the world of which he forms a living 
self-active part, and should proceed without any appreciable jar into 
the life of the after-school period. As the Manual well says in para- 
graph four: "The school must be considered as an institution which 
not only prepares for life hut which is life." This view-point forms 
the basis for the discussion in the pages which follow of the Course of 
Study and its actual working out in class-room instruction. 

124 



2. The Elementary Course of Study. 

All children who complete the elementary course of study receive 
instruction in the following subjects : 

Reading. 

Spelling. 

Writing. 

Arithmetic. 

Physical Training. 

Language (Oral and Written Expression). 

Drawing (Including Decoration and Construction). 

Geography and Nature Study. 

Picture Study. 

History (including Current Events and Elementary Civics). 

Physiology and Health Lessons. 

It would be a waste of time and money to give a detailed outline of 
just what work the subjects cover. They are outlined in very com- 
plete detail in the official manual which is available for every interested 
citizen of Akron. The noticeable omissions from the course are the 
subjects usually included under the names of Manual Training and 
Domestic Arts and that important branch of Physical Training, Swim- 
ming. The first two are now almost universal in school systems which 
claim to be abreast of the times, while swimming on account of its 
practical and developmental value is rapidly conquering an assured 
position for itself on the modern curriculum. The Course of Study in 
the Bowen School is on the whole well up to accepted standards, and 
represents the minimum which is the birthright of every child in 
\kron. The importance of the motor element in education, as will be 
pointed out later in the analysis of actual class-room instruction, is 
recognized throughout the Akron system and is given as large a space 
as is humanly possible within the present range of the curriculum and 
the physical facilities provided. In the lower grades drawing and 
construction work with the motor elements in academic subjects give 
at least fairly adequate recognition to the principle of the necessary 
correlation of impression and expression. But in the upper grades 
where the children are passing through a period of vigorous growth 
their developmental needs, mental and physical, require, in addition 
to these, facilities for expression which will bring into play the larger 
muscles and will necessitate comparatively vigorous action and free- 
dom of movement. The almost absolute lack of such opportunities in 
wood-working, cooking and swimming is particularly serious for those 
over-age children in grades below the seventh who come of legal 
working age before the completion of the school course, and who in 
many cases are handicapped mentally and physically throughout life 
by the failure to pass through at the proper time an environment rich 
in opportunity for motor expression. No better short discussion of 
the place of motor expression in education is to be found than in Dr. 
Hotchkiss' paper on "Expression: A Necessity in the Development 

125 



of Thought Power." The following quotations give an idea of the 
stand of the Superintendent : 

"Self-education begins in our race with the stretching forth of the 
hand." 

"Whether by design or not, laboratories, note books and play- 
grounds, gymnasiums, shops, and drawing rooms are, when rightly 
understood and used, means by which pupils may express them- 
selves and thereby develop thought power." 

"James, in his 'Talk for Teachers,' says: 'No impression without 
correlative expression : This is the great maxim which the teacher 
ought never to forget. An impression which simply flows in at 
the pupils' eyes or ears, and in no other way modifies his active 
life, is an impression gone to waste. Its motor consequences are 
what clinch it. ' " 

The child throughout his elementary school life is receiving impres- 
sions from seeing people making things and cooking things. Particu- 
larly at the later grammar grade age these impressions constitute sug- 
gestions and even impulsions which force children to such forms of 
expression as their means will allow. In so far as these expressions 
fall short of the best possible to the child, just so far the educational 
process has failed. It is the duty of the school to see to it that the 
richest possible motor environment shall be vouchsafed to every child 
while he is in school and while his motor instincts are dominant. It 
is not enough to supply these opportunities in the High School. If a 
choice had to be made between the High Schools and the elementary 
schools, the elementary schools should have the first claim for these 
if for no other reasons : 

1. All children go to the elementary schools. 

2. Some children never get to any other schools. 

3. Some children do not even complete an elementary school course. 

4. Delay in supplying sufficient motor activity is apt to lead to the 
atrophy or non-development of certain valuable tendencies or 
powers which are part of each individual's assets. 

5. If children have received a good foundation in the grades they 
are more in a position to obtain for themselves the proper means 
of motor expression than would children who have to go to 
work direct from the elementary school without instruction in 
such subjects as manual training and domestic arts. 

6. "While the High School probably produces a greater number of 
leaders than are found among those who never go to High School, 
this can never make up for a lack of a high general level of 
intelligence and productive efficiency among the rank and file 
in a modern democracy. 

126 



II. HOW THE SUBJECTS OF THE COURSE OF STUDY ARE 
TAUGHT IN THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS OF AKRON. 

1. Basis of Judgment. 

The basis for the judgment expressed in the discussion which fol- 
lows was the careful observation of 163 teaching exercises in all grades 
from the kindergarten to Grade 8-A, inclusive. Not all of these were 
complete exercises but a sufficient amount of each was observed to 
give a fair idea of the methods of instruction when taken in connec- 
tion with complete observation of other similar exercises. The work of 
one school was observed for a school week in order that a complete 
cross-section of one school might be obtained as a guide in observing 
the work of other schools. In all 14 school buildings were visited for 
observation of class-room teaching, for periods varying from 11 hours 
to one week. After some three weeks were put in in class-room ob- 
servation it became evident that a further investment of time in this 
way was unnecessary for the purpose of this study, — the formation 
of an intelligent judgment as to actual class-room processes as a basis 
for recommendations. Further study would simply duplicate the ex- 
perience and information already obtained. 

No attempt was made in. this study to apply any of the so-called 
standardized tests of class-room instruction. The following are some 
of the reasons : 

1. As later pointed out, 44% of the total membership of the schools 
comes from places outside of Akron so that any tests applied 
would not enable any comparison to be fairly made with other 
school systems. 

2. The school population within Akron itself is extremely migratory 
so that any tests applied by a short study could not give any 
satisfactory basis for comparing school with school or any school 
with itself at a preceding period. 

3. Any tests to be of real value from an administrative standpoint 
are best made by the Superintendent, principals and teachers 
themselves. They best know local conditions, are best able to 
judge for Akron the comparative value of different tests, and 
through experience gained in giving the tests acquire an added 
ability to give practical recommendations which might grow out 
of the tests. 

4. It is extremely doubtful whether any tests have been— or per 
haps can be— developed in any subjects, except those purely me- 
chanical, of any value except for the light they give the teachers 
on their own work. 

5. Tests of the mechanical subjects are already in use in Akron, 
some types having been discarded after careful experiment. 

6. What Akron wants to know is not so much how she compares 
with other cities (Akron conditions are unique in many respects) 
but how she compares with her own highest possibilities. 

127 



7. The comparison of class-room processes and results in particu- 
lar schools and for particular principals and teachers is entirely 
outside of the scope of this report. These are topics for the con- 
sideration of the local authorities. 

8. Any tests to be of value would require a much greater period of 
incidence that was at the disposal of those charged with the 
study. 

!). The major points at issue — matters of great importance to the 
community — could not be studied apart from observation of 
processes and the actual reactions of teachers and pupils. These 
major points include such topics as the development of initiative 
among pupils, freedom of experiment among teachers, the de- 
velopment of habits of accuracy and diligence among pupils, the 
development of citizenship, the use of the investment in the 
schools for the highest and most varied community purposes. 

Before reading the Course of Study and Manual of Instruction and 
holding prolonged conferences with school officials, a form of inquiry 
was drawn up as a basis of study. No attempt was made to cover all 
the points which should be observed, as a great many of these do not 
lend themselves to tabulation or inquiry by schedules. The form was 
used simply to insure a certain uniformity in observation and that no 
important point lending itself to tabular treatment should be left out. 
The form is submitted herewith : 

Date 

Name of School Grades , 

No. present Time of lesson 

Lesson in Nature of exercise 

Topic of Time lost 



A. Personality of Teacher. 

1. Neat. 

2. Vigorous. 

3. At ease. 

4. Sympathetic. 

5. Dignified. 

6. Loud spoken. 

7. Stimulating initiative. 

8. Talkative. 

0. Enthusiastic. 

B. Methods of Teacher. 

1. Repeats answers. 

2. Repeats questions. 

'.]. Requires definite answers. 

4. Requires accurate answers. 

5. Completes pupil's answers. 

6. Asks leading questions. 

12S 



7. Asks pumping questions. 

8. Interrupts pupils when reciting. 

9. Teaches from text book. 

10. Associates advance steps with past class work. 

11. With past experience of children. 

12. Motivates lesson. 

13. Brings out relative values. 

14. Uses illustrative material. 

15. Suggests material for solution of problems. 

16. Gives opportunity for pupil co-operation in developing 

lesson. 

17. Assigns by pages or paragraphs. 

18. Assigns by topics. 

19. Makes clear assignments. 

C. Reaction of Class. 

1. Pupils interested. 

2. Pupils ask questions. 

3. Volunteer information or suggestions. 

4. Show other signs of self-activity. 

5. Recite fluently. 

6. Talk aimlessly. 

7. Give incorrect answers. 

8. Give hazy answers. 

9. Answers in words of book. 

10. Answers apparently committed to memory. 

11. Pupils co-operate with teacher and class-mates. 

NOTES 

It will be observed that the points covered are such as come up fre- 
quently in the experience of every supervising officer and that no at- 
tempt is made to be ultra-scientific or to itemize extensively. The 
notes provide opportunity for observations on aspects of class-work 
not covered by the schedule. 

After the class-room enquiry was completed an analysis was made 
of material which would throw light on the standards of class-room 
excellence which are applied in the supervision of the Akron schools. 
The following excerpts from publications of the Superintendent will 
shed light on the question of how the standards actually used in the 
inquiry compare with the official standards of class-room instruction 
as set up for the guidance of Akron teachers. 

"Things to be avoided: 

1. "In the schools that I attended, and probably in those that you 
attended, the daily practice was about as follows : Lessons were 
assigned without explanation or illumination on the part of the 
teacher, to be prepared by the pupils at their seats or at their 
homes. In the recitation period, the teacher questioned and cross- 
questioned pupils upon the subject-matter of the lessons previ- 
ously assigned. Most answers given by pupils were repeated by 

129 



the teacher before the next question was asked. Very often the 
teacher interrupted the pupil in the midst of his answer, com- 
pleting the answer herself. Very often, when the pupil hesi- 
tated in answering, the teacher by suggestion, intonation, or di- 
rect statement supplied the pupil what he himself should have 
stated. The teacher exercised little, if any, discrimination in 
selecting topics to be emphasized and explained. All facts and 
truths were placed upon the same dead level, and were droned 
over principally by the teacher, apparently upon the theory that 
what the teacher said in the presence of the child found lodg- 
ment in the memory of the child and developed corresponding 
power in the faculties of the child." 

2. "If I were to name the characteristic mistake in the practice of 
the teaching profession, the mistake that results most disas- 
trously to the pupils, I would say that it is the practice (also, 
too universal) of talking too much to the pupils, of doing too 
much for them, and of requiring too little from them." 

3. "Many schools operate their ventilating fans with gas engines. 
The exhaust pipes from these engines are usually conducted 
under-ground to chambers of concrete, whose purpose is to muffle 
the explosions. Fellow-teachers, one concrete muffler is usually 
enough about a school-house. Let that one be outside, under- 
ground. 

Furthermore, let us see to it that no such mufflers get inside the 
school-rooms, behind the teachers' desks, there to check the ex- 
plosions in the thought centers of the children which might, 
under proper encouragement and direction, result in self-ex- 
pression in its manifold forms." 

It would seem evident that the two sets of standards are funda- 
mentally similar and that any conclusions drawn from the results of 
applying the standards used in this inquiry should — if done thor- 
oughly — be eminently just and helpful from the standpoint of local 
conditions. Those responsible for the inquiry have no quarrel with 
the local standard as expressed in official documents. Any class-room 
teaching which comes measurably near to fulfilling these standards 
would necessarily be rated as of very high quality. 

2. General Characteristics of Class-room Instruction in the Elemen- 
tary Schools. 

The thing that impressed the writer most in an examination of class- 
room processes in Akron is the remarkable facility with which large 
numbers of children from the first grade up are able to think and ex- 
press themselves connectedly on their feet, ruder the most favorable 
circumstances this does not limit itself to expressing the thoughts ob- 
tained' from text-books or teacher but shows itself in independent 
criticism of the recitations of others, in some cases in impromptu and 
rough and ready debate, and frequently in pointed questions addressed 
to ci ass-mate or teacher. Not all these manifestations of self-mastery 
and initiative were observed in all class-rooms visited. Some class- 

130 



rooms gave little or no evidence of real success in developing auton- 
omous action in the pupil. In some class-rooms there was but the ap- 
pearance of independence — the pupils were as much automata under 
the control of the teacher as possible under any system. A martinet, 
a principal or teacher defective in sympathy or imagination, may se- 
cure the appearance of freedom while conducting a system of regi- 
mentation very debilitating to pupil and teacher alike. For some time 
the examiner was at a loss to. account for the general free expression 
of pupils in recitation, but a day or two in the class-room supplied the 
explanation. These are found in two ways of doing things in the 
Akron schools : 

a. The study-recitation. 

b. The automatic pupil administration. 



a.— The Study-Recitation. 

The examiner found that practically every recitation on old ma- 
term 1 had been preceded by a period when the teachers and the pupils 
went over the new lesson together, the teacher pointing out or getting 
the pupils to point out the most important feature, relating the ma- 
terial to past knowledge and correlating and co-ordinating the material 
within itself. Where well conducted, the pupils asked questions freely, 
the teacher invited questions and the whole exercise was designed to 
show the pupils how to study, not to do the actual studying for the 
pupils. When poorly conducted the study-recitation was hardly more 
than a bare assignment of the lesson, in extreme cases by pages only. 
There can be no excuse for the failure of any teacher in Akron to ap- 
preciate the importance of teaching the children how to study. This 
is shown clearly by the following excerpts from an address given by 
the Superintendent and available to every principal and teacher. 

' ' The time spent by a pupil in the mastery of his daily lesson should 
usually be divided into three parts — study-recitation, the indi- 
vidual seat or home-study, and the recitation. The minutes to be 
spent on each part will depend upon the nature of the lesson." 

"The study-recitation is the exercise in which the teacher leads her 
pupils in their first attack upon the lesson that is to be studied 
later and recited next day. It is an assignment of the lesson, and 
very much more than the mere assignment by page or topic. It 
is in the study-recitation that the activity of the teacher is great- 
est. It is in this that the teacher really teaches." 

"Among the ends to be accomplished by the study-recitation are 
these: (1) It should help the pupil to know: (a) which are the 
great points in the lesson; (b) how to connect these facts already 
learned; (c) how to determine their bearing upon the general 
trend of the subject; (d) what helps should be used in preparing 
the lesson and just how to use those helps; (e) what constitutes 
a mastery of the lesson and a passable recitation upon it. (2) It 
should develop in the pupils correct methods and habits of study. 

131 



(3) It should afford the teacher an opportunity to know the powers 
and attainments of each of her pupils with respect to the lesson, 
and the subject, thereby suggesting lines of additional personal 
help." 

In some cases, while all this is appreciated, the local administration 
of a particular school may so standardize practice and insist on abso- 
lute conformity to what should be regarded as important suggestions 
and not prescriptions, that, while the immediate acquisition of in- 
formation is facilitated, the power to see the meaning in information 
and to choose to acquire the information on account of its meaning 
may be sacrificed. To secure independence of thought and action in 
the child the teacher must herself be free, the principal must be free 
and must respect the freedom of others, and uniformity must not be 
absolute but relative and based not on cast iron regulations but a 
system of team play decided on by co-operative thinking and planning. 
Capacity for independent thought and initiative can be developed in 
pupils only by those habitually autonomous in thought and action. 
Where teachers and principals failed to get the most out of the study- 
recitation period it seemed to follow from a too rigid adherence to the 
details of the Manual of Instruction, much of which should be re- 
garded simply as suggestions and typical methods of procedure. It 
requires a nice discrimination to determine what is prescriptive, what 
is adaptive and what is suggestive. No Manual of Instruction can lay 
this down. Only the teacher herself, in full possession of the facts as 
to her pupils and their particular needs and modes of reaction, can 
determine it. There is no such thing as the absolutely best way of 
teaching anything any more than there is one absolutely best suit of 
clothes. The most that a principal should insist on in any case is that 
a teacher should have in any particular case considered the normal 
way and that she shall be able to give a reason for departure from the 
norm. In most cases it should be taken for granted that the teacher 
knows what she is doing until results show that she does not. Better 
results are often obtained by allowing a teacher to do a thing in the 
second best way if it is her way, and the way she believes in, rather 
than in the best way which the principal believes in. The examiner's 
experience in the class-rooms of Akron convinced him that in the ma- 
jority of cases the study-recitation was doing what was expected of it, 
that in all cases much better results were being obtained than is usually 
the case, and that in none are conditions such that informal and sympa- 
thetic conferences could not remedy any outstanding defects. 

b. — Automatic Pupil Administration. 

From the first grade up, pupils were found in actual charge of most 
of the routine operations of the class-room and, in the upper grades, of 
most of the recitation periods (as distinct from study-recitations). In 
the lower grades pupil administration took charge of the passing of 
materials, the adjusting of window shades, the cleaning of black-boards 
and erasers and such like, and in many cases physical exercises were 
cmducted by pupils. In the upper grades not only were the mechanics 
of school-room management in the hands of the pupils but the majority 

132 



of recitations in reading, writing, geography, history, spelling and 
arithmetic were conducted by pupils. In several cases study-recita- 
lions in spelling and, in a few, study-recitations in subjects of a less 
mechanical nature were observed. When properly carried out not only 
is the resourcefulness, initiative and sense of responsibility of the 
pupils increased, but an immense amount of the energy of teachers is 
set free for the real work of teaching. 

The lesson unit in Akron consists of three stages : 

3. The study-recitation. 

2. Study by pupil at seat or at home. 

3. The recitation proper. 

The first has already been discussed. The second needs no discus- 
sion. The application of the pupil administration principle to the recita- 
tion is perhaps the most distinctive feature of the Akron system. 

How the Recitation Proper is Conducted. 

In the study-recitation period the teacher and her class are co- 
operators, but the leader is the teacher. Here she does her most valu- 
able work in instruction. 

In the pupil-study period the teacher vanishes completely save for 
her function of protecting against interruption. 

In the recitation period the teacher may or may not have direct 
charge. The judicious principal will encourage discrimination on the 
part of teachers as to just what recitations may be best conducted by 
the pupils. The Manual of Instruction allows either method but in- 
sists that in any case the most of the time shall be taken up by the 
pupils and not by the teachers. In the words of the Superintendent 
"The special aim of the recitation is to give the pupils a maximum of 
exercise in appropriate expression with the least possible talk from the 
teacher either in explanation or question. AVhen the teacher con- 
ducts the exercise, the matter should be so planned that her activities 
will consist only in indicating the pupil who is to recite." As a mat- 
ter of fact this method is worked out in practice. The best teachers in 
most cases are able to restrain themselves until the end of the recita- 
tion to gather up the threads which have not been properly tied and to 
make necessary corrections. In some cases even the best teachers can 
not follow out the letter of the directions. It would sometimes be un- 
natural or unwise to do so. The weaker teachers frequently and with- 
out real necessity break in upon the operations of the class. 

There is no doubt that in most cases the technique of the teacher 
would be more finished than that of the pupil, but the growth which 
comes from self-directed activities more than makes up for any crudities 
in technique. In any event the teacher is a constant onlooker always 
ready to fill in the gaps at the end of a pupil-conducted exercise.* 

*"During the recitation, the pupil is again important and the teacher correspondingly 
unimportant. In terms of the times, the pupils must 'run the recitation and the teacher 
must not butt in.' In other words, the special aim of the recitation is to give the pupils the 
maximum of exercise in appropriate expression with the least possible talk from the teacher 
either in explanation or question." 

133 



Criticisms frequently made of the pupil-recitation are that : 

1. The most capable pupils are the only ones called on ; 

2. Collusion between pupil-leader and individuals of the class may 
defeat the ends of the recitation. 

As to the first criticism, the same may be urged against the teacher- 
conducted recitation. The line of least resistance is always easy to 
follow. There is no good reason why every pupil should not receive 
his full share of attention. Experience in the class-rooms of Akron 
would tend to the belief that in any event pupil-leaders were apt to 
be at least sufficiently ruthless in their pursuit of the results of poor 
preparation. "With regard to the second criticism it may be said that 
the remedy for collusion — if this exists — is not less pupil participation 
but more. "When pupils feel absolutely responsible and on their honor 
for the proper conduct of the recitation, they will leave no stone un- 
turned to obtain success. The wide-awake principal and teacher need 
allow neither of these criticisms to be valid in actual practice. 

Next to the facility with which pupils expressed themselves the 
most notable general feature of the conduct of class-room exercises 
was the comparatively small part of time taken up by the teachers in 
talking. Only one or two classes were observed where the teacher 
"lectured," while in a large number of recitations the teacher took no 
part save to call on the leaders and sum up at the close, usually by the 
use of questions addressed to individuals in the class. 



Excerpts From Typical Field Notes. 

Below are resumes of typical field notes taken during observation 
of class-room instruction in Akron: 

Reading : 

Grade I-A. Present, 20. Exercise fifteen minutes in duration. The 
teacher was neat in appearance and of vigorous personality. In her 
teaching she was at ease, sympathetic, dignified and enthusiastic. 
Her voice was low and she did not interrupt the class by too much talk- 
ing. The exercise was preceded by thorough phonic drill at the black- 
board. The reading of the class w T as good as to pronunciation and 
enunciation. The teacher brought out expression by judicious ques- 
tioning. The teacher repeated one answer but did not repeat ques- 
tions, ask leading questions or interrupt pupils in the midst of sen- 
tences. She required accuracy and clearness. The pupils seemed in- 
terested and read with satisfactory fluency. 

Grade V-A. Present, 23. Exercise ten minutes in duration. The 
teacher was neat, vigorous, at ease, sympathetic and dignified. Her 
voice was not loud, she was not too talkative, and she seemed fairly 
enthusiastic. The teacher required accuracy and showed none of the 
small faults of technique. She established associations between former 
and present work of the class, brought out relative values of the 
material before the class and made a clear assignment drawing at- 

134 



tention to the chief topics. The class-room was very quiet and the 
children were interested. The first part of the exercise was con- 
ducted by a pupil. 

Grade III-B. Present, 17. The teacher's appearance was neat. She 
talked little and in a low tone of voice. She insisted on accuracy and 
showed none of the common defects in the mechanics of recitation. 
The pupils showed little interest and showed no particular initiative 
or tendency to co-operate. They read with fair fluency, held their 
books well and spoke distinctly. 

Grade I-A. Present, 13. The teacher's personality was good. She 
was enthusiastic and her manner with her class was excellent. Her 
class methods were not open to adverse criticism. The children were 
interested and read fluently. The teacher's share in the work of the 
class was not prominent. 

Grade VII-B. Present, 12. Length of exercise, fifteen minutes. 
The subject was "Ichabod Crane" both for the recitation and study- 
recitation. The teacher's presence and class methods were excellent. 
The recitation was conducted by a pupil, who did well but was per- 
haps a little lenient in requiring good expression. The children were 
interested and free in their comments. One boy volunteered that 
" Ichabod 's pupils were as bad as the children in Akron when the 
teacher's back is turned." This was greeted with a laugh by both 
teacher and class. 

Grade I-A, second division. This class began as I-B in September 
and is now doing II-B work in reading. The teacher was very vigorous 
and enthusiastic and had a good appearance. Defects in the mechanics 
of recitation were not evident in her work. She "motivated" the les- 
son well. The subject was "The Pied Piper of Hamelin. " The class 
read fluently and with good expression, which was brought out by 
judicious questioning by the teacher. 

Geography : 

Grade VIII-A. Present, 25. The recitation was observed fifteen 
minutes and the study-recitation ten minutes. The teacher's presence 
was excellent and she showed no defects in technique beyond repeating 
a question once. She used illustrative material well and gave every 
opportunity for pupil co-operation. The pupils were interested, asked 
questions freely, volunteered information and showed throughout a 
spirit of co-operation and independent criticism. The chief topic of 
the exercise was "Why is Great Britain a Great Manufacturing Cen- 
ter?" The pupil leader of the recitation did well, and was called on 
to recite himself by one member of the class. There was considerable 
illustrative material on the walls and on the table, including a stereo- 
scope with views. 

Grade VIII-B. Present, 13. The recitation proper was twenty 
minutes in length and the study-recitation five. The teacher's presence 
was excellent and no mistakes in the mechanics of teaching were evi- 
dent. The subject of the recitation was "Boston." The teacher as- 
sociated the material of the lesson with past school work and the past 

135 



experiences of the children. Full opportunity was given for pupil 
co-operation. Her assignment was clear and by topics, not merely 
by pages and paragraphs. The pupil leader of the recitation offered 
to his classmates a mass of information apparently gathered from 
several sources. In the study-recitation the teacher encouraged the 
pupils to formulate "thought questions" bearing on the next lesson. 

Grade V-A. Present, 26. Length of recitation twenty-two minutes. 
The personality of the teacher was good, perhaps a little lacking in 
enthusiasm, due, it may be, to the presence of a supposedly critical 
stranger. The teacher's methods were excellent. The pupils were in- 
terested and co-operated well with one another and with the teacher. 
The subject was "Japan." There was no illustrative material in the 
room which could be used for geographical instruction. The lesson 
might have been prepared better by the pupils. The pupil leader did 
very well and the pupils helped him effectively. The teacher only 
interrupted once by correcting a girl for saying that Japan was 
bounded on the west by Asia. The teacher was challenged on this 
point by one of the boys. The teacher made notes of the mistakes made, 
for later correction. She was not satisfied with the recitation and as- 
signed no new work, but spent the rest of the exercise in developing 
the day's lesson. The teacher was perhaps somewhat severe. She said 
to two boys who were particularly ill-prepared: "You are going to 
get that (the lesson). You are not simply filling a seat and looking 
handsome. Are you dead?" These boys were detained after school. 

Grade VI-B. Present, 15. Length of exercise, twenty-five minutes. 
Personality of teacher good. Methods good. Subject, "The Pocky 
Mountains." The class was much interested and contributed by 
questions and volunteered information. A pupil was in complete con- 
trol, the teacher — a substitute — taking little or no part in the exercise. 
One boy told the class of a visit of his brother to the Grand Canyon. 
Another said he was going to Omaha, and another that the Rocky 
Mountains were just back of the house of a relative of his. The whole 
exercise was extremely interesting. 

Grade TV-B. Present, 34. Length of exercise, twenty minutes in 
recitation, five minutes in study-recitation. The personality of the 
teacher was good but she did not seem to have the ability to manage 
the recitation so as to bring out pupil co-operation. Topic of the les- 
son, "the Oceans." Globes and maps were referred to somewhat, but 
other illustrative material which should have been available was not 
used. The class seemed interested, but there was no questioning on 
their part, and but one case of volunteered information. The recitation 
started under a pupil leader but the teacher soon assumed charge. 
Pupil administration was only an appearance in this class. During the 
study-recitation a child would read a sentence and then reproduce its 
meaning. Tin; whole class then wrote a resume of the lesson and the 
advance lesson. 

136 



History : 

Grade VIII-A. Present, 14. Length of exercise, thirty minutes in 
recitation and seven minutes in study-recitation. The personality of 
the teacher was good. She showed no defects in the mechanics of the 
recitation, and she encouraged by her manner and methods pupil ini- 
tiative and co-operation. The recitation was pupil-conducted. At 
one point the teacher said "May I ask a question?" She was granted 
the privilege and used it to point out the main object of the lesson. 
When a pupil recited, classmates used the right to question him further. 
When the recitation proper was completed a boy arose and said "This 
was a good leader." The class applauded heartily. The subject of the 
advance lesson was the "Visits of Lafayette." The teacher with the 
pupils developed the main subject and brought out the sub-topics by 
questioning. 

Grade VIII-A. Present, 31. Length of recitation, thirty minutes. 
The study-recitation was not observed. The teacher, while very quiet, 
was particularly enthusiastic and successful in stimulating pupil ini- 
tiative and co-operation. During the exercise the material of the 
lesson was linked up with that of the past lesson and with the ex- 
periences of pupils. The period under discussion was that immediately 
preceding the Civil War. The teacher had nothing to say save at the 
beginning and the close. The girl leader was rather original in her 
questioning. With regard to some move on the part of Douglas she 
asked "Was this a mark of brightness?" One of the boys asked to 
describe the character of John Brown observed that "John Brown 
was very bull-headed and very religious." The unintentional humor 
of this remark was apparent to the class. Nearly all the children had 
seen John Brown's house and were familiar with the fact that he was 
an Akronian. Many had seen John Brown's brother. The only criti- 
cism of any moment which could be made of this recitation was that 
perhaps two girls and one boy took too prominent a part in the exer- 
cise. 

Grade VIII-B. Present, 19. Length of observation, twenty minutes. 
This recitation was in most respects typical. It illustrated the fact, 
however, that it requires much more skill on the part of the teacher 
to carry out the pupil-leader idea than to do the teaching herself. 
The teacher frequently interrupted the proceedings of the class. The 
weakness of pupil instruction when not properly guided was also 
illustrated. Pupils mispronounced words frequently without correc- 
tion by either teacher or class leader. 

Arithmetic : 

Grade VI-B. Present, 25. Length of exercise, fifteen minutes. This 
exercise was a mental arithmetic drill. The presence of the teacher 
and her methods were good. The teacher supplied two models on 
which the pupil leader based her questions to the class. Later all 
drill questions written on the board by the teacher were taken up. 
The pupil leader, who was from Denmark, was very accurate and 

137 



conscientious and conducted the exercise in better form than some 
teachers. 

Grade 1I-A. Present, 19. Period- of observation, seven minutes. 
The teacher was rather loud spoken and not very stimulating, but was 
otherwise up to the mark in personality. The teacher repeated answers 
and asked leading questions frequently. The class was not particularly 
interested. Many were tired. There was much yawning and coughing. 
This was an oral drill exercise in adding and subtracting, followed 
by work at the board. 

Grade VI-A. Present, 18. Length of exercise, twenty-three minutes. 
The exercise was a drill in improper and decimal fractions and the 
changing of decimal and common fractions and vice versa. The teacher 
taught a somewhat inaccurate form of presentation, the only such case 
observed in the Akron schools. The teacher accepted rather too 
readily the assurances of the children that they understood. The 
children seemed to be doing their work mechanically. 

Grades VI and VI-P>. Present, 33. Length of observation, ten 
minutes. This exercise was an application of Thompson's tests. In 
four minutes the pupils were expected to write 120 separate results. 
Of the 33 present thirteen pupils got all results correctly, and 7 made 
only one mistake each. One girl finished in 1-1/4 minutes. Thirteen 
had finished at the end of 2 minutes. 

Grade III-A. Present, 19. Length of exercise, five minutes. The 
teacher spoke in rather a loud voice but was otherwise of excellent 
personality. She was very successful in motivating her work and se- 
eming pupil co-operation. The class was extremely interested and 
co-operated well. In a corner of the room was established a small 
grocery store with real packages and canned goods. Imitation money 
was used. One pupil was in charge of the store. One stood in front 
of the class and called on individuals telling them how many articles 
to buy. The children called on went to the storekeeper and gave their 
orders. The buyer tendered his money and change was made by the 
storekeeper in the commercial way. Both buyer arid seller examined 
the change. 

Grade V-A. Present, 9. Observation lasted ten minutes. Exercise, 
a drill in fractions of different kinds and their definitions. This was 
followed by type problems. The teacher was apparently nervous and 
repeated quest ions and asked leading questions frequently. She used 
such questions as "First we'll have to find the part cut off, won't we?" 
and "It means multiplication, doesn't it?" Nevertheless, the teacher 
tied up the advance material well with past work, secured considerable 
pupil co-operation and made a clear assignment. 

Civics : 

Grade VI I [-A. Present, 23. Length of observation, twenty minutes. 
The teacher's personality was good. She was enthusiastic and partic- 
ularly successful in stimulating initiative. The pupils were interested 
and co-operated well. One of the questions discussed was the treat- 

138 



ment of discharged prisoners. Some related experiences that dis- 
charged prisoners had gone through. In a very lively discussion a 
great divergence of opinion developed. One girl remarked with 
warmth, "I think the detective had a nerve to tell on a discharged 
man." Her sentiment met with general approval, particularly from 
the girls. Some of the boys took a rather legalistic and unprogressive 
attitude. The pupil leader corrected a boy for saying "git." At the 
close the teacher cleared up various points, such as the meaning of a 
word. A double negative was not corrected. The assignment was the 
weak point of the exercise — ' ' Start there and read as far as you can. ' ' 

Oral Language : 

Grade IV-B. Present, 18. _ Length of observation, twenty minutes. 
The exercise consisted of fluent reproductions of nature stories and 
poems in the readers. Two were "October's Bright Blue Weather" 
and Whittier's "Corn Song." The leader was a young Polish boy of 
nine, who gave the best demonstration of what a pupil can do in 
leading a class that the director of this study has ever witnessed. He 
knew what good expression was and succeeded in getting it from the 
class. 

ArtWork: 

Grade VII-A. Present, 44. Length of observation, ten minutes. 
The class was making advertising posters as if for various Akron busi- 
nesses. There were millinery, dutch cleanser, baseball, spark-plug, 
rubber tire, clay products, and clothing advertisements. Some chil- 
dren were making advertisements for their father's business. Even 
where children were advertising the same kind of business they 
adopted different treatment. Some of the work was copy, but most 
of it contained original elements and some were highly original. The 
teaching was entirely individual, the teacher sitting down with the 
children and discussing their work intimately. No work in Akron 
was better "motivated." None allowed more room for individual 
initiative or the expression of individual interests. There was a 
cheerful buzz and hum in the room arising entirely from conversation 
concerning the work in hand. It was felt that an increase in this 
sort of work — which is comparatively new in Akron — would have a 
healthy reflex action on the character of the discipline in classes when 
purely academic subjects are taught. 

(Five other exercises of the same nature were seen. The above des- 
cription applies essentially to all.) 

Spelling : 

Grades V-A and VI-B. Present, 49. Length of observation, fifteen 
minutes. The pupils were interested and co-operated with the leaders, 
who were two in number, one for V-A and one for VI-B. Each leader 
dictated words alternately. After the words were written the papers 
were changed and the correct spelling given for marking. A discus- 
sion arose between a pupil and a leader as to the correct spelling of 

139 



one word. After the lists were marked the papers were returned and 
each pupil concentrated on the words he had mis-spelled instead of 
spreading his effort over the whole list. 

Hygiene : 

Grade TI-B. Present, 40. Length of observation, ten minutes. The 
teacher interrupted the children somewhat, but motivated the lesson 
well by tying it up with pupils' experiences and needs, and gave op- 
portunity for pupil co-operation. The exercise was largely of the 
question and answer type and dealt mainly with the care of the teeth. 

(The temperature and ventilation of the room would have made a 
good topic for class discussion and afforded an opportunity for ex- 
plaining the system in use. No exercise of this nature was observed.) 

Music: 

Grades VI-A and VT-B. Present, 31. Duration of exercise, twenty 
minutes. The personality of the teacher was excellent. She was 
stimulating and enthusiastic. The pupils were interested, responded 
with ease and co-operated well with the teacher and each other. The 
teacher in beginning said "I don't like your position, and I don't be- 
lieve you would if you were listening as I am." The response was 
immediate and cheerful. It w r as interesting to see the teacher pick out 
the monotones and give each some personal attention. There were not 
enough music books to go around, a fact which interfered somewhat 
with the best success. The pupils sang well a song called "The De- 
lights of Spring." 

Penmanship : 

Grades II-A and 1I-B. Present, 38. Duration of exercise, fifteen 
minutes. The teacher's personality was very attractive to young chil- 
dren and she was quietly enthusiastic in her work. The pupils were 
very interested ami a contagious smile w T ent around the room when 
the exercise started. The teacher began by saying "We're going to 
have the nicest writing lesson we have ever had, and w^e're going to 
use white paper this time." The counting was done by the children. 
The teacher said "First Ave '11 make some nice, round ovals, tipped over 
and all touching one another." The form of the suggestion could not 
fail to affect the quality of the work. To a question of the teacher, 
"What is the first thing w^e should do?" the class responded, "Take 
position," and when the teacher asked "Why?" the pupils responded 
in chorus, "Because it helps us to w T rite." 

(This was the best taught lesson in penmanship seen.) 

Descriptive Summaries of Field Notes. 

The Teaching of Reading. 

The abstracts of field notes quoted above give a fair idea of the 
character of instruction in reading in the public schools of Akron. 
The work in phonics is very thorough. The effects of this are seen all 

140 



through the grades in power to read new material, in accurate pro- 
nunciation, and in clear enunciation. This does not mean that all 
these are found throughout the system, but that it is remarkable, in 
a city with such a migratory and growing school population, that 
results were obtained as good as those observed. A mistake which is 
often made, namely, reading over and over again of the same material 
in the primary grades, was not observed in Akron. Vocabulary and 
power grow not by reading the same book over again but by reading 
books of varying vocabulary with words occurring in different con- 
texts. This principle seems to be accepted completely in Akron. In 
some cases — perhaps through oversight — notwithstanding the care of 
teachers and pupils in mending the books, readers were observed which 
were not in good condition for putting in the hands of pupils. Par- 
ticularly in lower grades, this does not tend to develop in pupils a re- 
spect for books nor an idea of the importance of cleanliness. Lack of 
funds should not be allowed to interfere with keeping all text books 
in the schools above criticism as to physical condition. 

On the whole, good expression was obtained in the class-room work 
observed. This was done largely through judicious questioning by 
the teacher to bring out shades of meaning. In the upper grades some 
carelessness in this respect was observed, particularly where the read- 
ing was being done in classes other than reading classes. The import- 
ance of oral reading as compared with silent reading for the thought 
is, however, becoming less and less, owing to the rapid increase in 
reading material available for the public and the more rapid pace at 
which we live. Reading for the thought content is stressed in the 
Akron schools and, the writer believes, with good results. 

Below is a tabulation of the rating of reading lessons as to technique 
of teachers and reactions of class : 



Teachers (26 in number in 35 Classes) 

Yes 

No. of Classes in which Teachers 

1. Eepeated answers 5 

2. Repeated questions 1 

3. Required definite answers 20 

4. Required accurate answers 23 

5. Completed pupils' answers 

6. Asked leading questions 4 

7. Asked pumping' questions 1 

8. Interrupted pupils when reciting 3 

9. Taught from text book 1 

10. Associated advance steps with past class work 3 

11. Brought out relative values 2 

12. Used illustrative material 2 

13. Gave opportunity for pupil co-operation in 

developing lesson 2 

141 



No 


Somewhat 


20 


1 


25 




22 




20 




21 





12 





No 


Somewhat 


3 


1 


6 




5 




4 






1 


17 




15 




11 





Pupils in 35 Classes 

No. of Classes in which Pupils 

Yes 

1. Were interested 25 

2. Asked questions 1 

3. Volunteered information or suggestions 2 

4. Showed other signs of self activity 3 

5. Eeeited fluently 23 

6. Talked aimlessly 

7. Gave incorrect answers 1 

S. Gave hazy answers 

9. Co-operated with teachers and classmates 2 



Geography. 

Among the most interesting classes observed were those in geogra- 
phy. In these pupil-administration was well developed. In practically 
all classes observed pupils showed initiative, independence of judg- 
ment, power to co-operate and ability to think and speak on their 
feet. Considerable and effective use was made of maps and globes, 
though in one or two class-rooms the globes were in poor condition. 
In some class-rooms illustrative material was lacking, while in others 
there were considerable collections of material illustrative of indus- 
try and physical geography, as well as collections of stereoscopic views 
with the necessary instruments (See pages 135, 136, 234). The im- 
pression of the observer is that greater use might be made of the 
material at hand. In any event every school should have a school 
museum collected and classified by the teachers and pupils themselves, 
and each of the upper grades should have partial class collections. 
These collections could be duplicated from year to year for educational 
results, — the present practice in several schools — the best specimens 
and pictures being contributed each year to the school museum. The 
lanterns are used effectively in some schools, at least, for purposes of 
geographical instruction. In some ways the lantern picture is superior 
to the motion picture, but for the illustration of processes and modes of 
life the motion picture is coming to be regarded as an indispensable 
auxiliary. If every large school were supplied with the smaller type 
of machine, which needs no special apparatus for fire prevention, not 
only could the teachers use it in their individual class-rooms whenever 
desired but the equipment would be very valuable for work connected 
with the larger use of school plant and would prove a valuable means 
of combating the evil effects of the commercialized moving picture on 
children and adults alike. 

Below is a tabulation of the rating of geography lessons as to 
technique of teachers and reactions of class : 

142 



No 


Somewhat 


12 


3 


15 


1 


10 




14 




14 




15 




12 





Teachers (14 in number in 17 Classes) 

Yes 

No. of Classes in which Teachers 

1. Repeated answers 1 

2. Repeated questions 

3. Required definite answers 16 

4. Required accurate answers 16 

5. Completed pupils' answers 4 

6. Asked leading questions 1 

7. Asked pumping questions 1 

8. Interrupted pupils when reciting 

9. Taught from text book 1 

10. Associated advance steps with past class work.... 5 

11. With past experience of children 3 

12. Motivated lesson 1 

13. Brought out relative values 4 

14. Used illusti-ative material 1 

15. Suggested material for solution of problems 4 

16. Gave opportunity for pupil co-operation in 

developing lesson .... 4 

17. Assigned by topics 7 

18. Made clear assignments 7 

Pupils in 17 Classes 

No. of Classes in which Pupils 

1. Were interested 16 

2. Asked questions '. 6 2 

3. Volunteered information or suggestions 8 

One undesirable feature in the teaching of geography was the too 
strict adherence by some teachers to the suggestive outline in the 
Manual of Instruction. In some cases this was written on the board 
and was followed so rigidly as to give a somewhat mechanical character 
to some parts of the exercise. This procedure undoubtedly insures that 
no point shall be overlooked, but it may lead to putting time on features 
of no importance in the particular exercises concerned. It tends to 
make teachers fill all exercises into the same frame and to unduly limit 
initiative. Teachers are prone to forget that the teaching of geography 
—as of all other subjects — is not so much to squeeze out all the infor- 
mation in the topic as to develop among pupils ability to attack prob- 
lems on their merits and on their own initiative. 

In this connection should be noticed the very excellent practice of 
class excursions to nearby places and buildings under the direction, of 
course, of class teachers, and in connection with the regular class- 
work. 

Twenty schools report nature-study trips to the woods ; 17, excur- 
sions to see land and water formations ; 4, trips to the market ; 5, trips 
to shops; 5, to rubber plants; 4, to salt works; 2, to cereal plants; 1, 
to a tile plant; 1, to a pottery plant; 1, to a paper plant; 1, to a match 
factory; 1, to a forge; 2, to foundries; 1, to a heating and ventilating 
establishment ; and 1, not described. 

Six schools reported visits to public buildings, such as fire-halls, the 
public library, court house, city hall. Of the nine visits reported under 
this head, three were made by one school. 

143 



The following excerpts from notes of principals are interesting: 

a — "Have done little along this line. Use stereopticon views ex- 
tensively. Children are encouraged to describe their observa- 
tions during excursion trips." 

b — "School too large to make such excursions." (Comment — no 
such trips should be made except in small groups.) 

c — "Each year the 8th grade makes a trip through the South High 
School building, noting the various special activities. Find this 
quite a help in arousing a desire on the part of 8-A pupils to 
enter High School. ' ' 

d — "Have made visits to city council, police courts, etc." (High 
School). 

This work should be greatly extended in connection with geography, 
history and civics classes, not only for the sake of the regular school 
work, but for the sake of citizenship and vocational guidance. 

History. 

The teaching of history as observed in the Akron schools is similar 
in general characteristics to that of geography. The pupil leadership 
of recitations is on the whole well carried out. The study-recitations 
in which the teachers broke the ground for the new lesson were well 
conducted. In the recitations the pupils did most of the work and in 
the study-recitations they did their full share. An interesting and 
effective method observed was the formulation of "thought questions" 
by pupils, around which the material of the advance lesson was to be 
organized. Maps were used well in the geography instruction but 
there is more room for the use of illustrative material in the nature of 
historical pictures and objects of interest. The observations above as 
to the use of projective apparatus in geography apply with equal 
force here. 

Following is a tabulation of the rating of history lessons as to 
technique of teachers and reactions of class : 

Teachers (6 in number in 8 Classes) 

No. of Classes in which Teachers Yes No Somewhal 

1. Repeated answers 7 

2. Repeated questions 7 

3. Required definite answers 7 

4. Required accurate answers 7 

5. Completed pupils' answers 6 

6. Asked leading questions 6 

7. Asked pUmping questions 6 

8. Interrupted pupils when reciting 1 5 

9. Taught from text book 1 3 

10. Associated advance steps with past class work.... 2 

11. With past experience of children 3 

12. Motivated lesson 7 

13. Brought out relative values 1 

14. Surest eil material for solution of problems 1 

15. Gave opportunity for pupil co-operation in 

developing lesson — - 2 5 

16. Assigned by pages or paragraphs 1 

17. Assigned by topics 3 

18. Made (dear assignments 4 

144 



Pupils in 8 Classes 

No. of Classes in which Pupils 

Yes No Somewhat 

1. Were interested 7 

2. Asked questions 7 

3. Volunteered information or suggestions 6 

4. Showed other signs of self activity 2 

5. Recited fluently 7 

6. Talked aimlessly 6 

7. Gave incorrect answers 6 

8. Gave hazy answers 5 

9. Answered in words of book 5 

10. Answers apparently committed to memory 5 

11. Pupils co-operated with teachers and class-mates 4 .... 3 

Arithmetic. 

The teaching of arithmetic as observed in the elementary schools was 
on the whole of good quality. Exact comparison with the teaching of 
geograph}' and history is of course impossible, but it is perhaps allow- 
able to say that the teaching of arithmetic did not impress the observer 
with the same sense of high efficiency as did that of geography and 
history. This was perhaps due to a greater human interest on the 
part of teachers in the humanistic branches. While efforts were made 
to secure effective pupil administration in arithmetic, and while drill 
exercises were conducted by pupils extremely well, it could not be 
said that powers of initiative and co-operation were being developed 
as well as might be by the teaching of this subject. The mechanical 
technique of arithmetic teaching was good, in some cases well nigh per- 
fect, but the spirit of joy in the work was not equally high. The ac- 
curacy of the pupils in the four fundamental operations in most classes 
observed might with fairness be ranked as remarkable. The impres- 
sion received by the observer was that the work in arithmetic on the 
whole was not sufficiently motivated by being tied up — in the mind of 
the pupil, not in the mind of the writer of the text book — Avith those 
activities of life which seem real to children. As woodworking and 
cooking extend their influence through the elementary school course, 
the teaching of arithmetic cannot fail to be immensely benefited. The 
class in arithmetic described above, conducted with the aid of an actual 
grocery store, points the way to other similar devices for "realizing" 
instruction in arithmetic. 



145 



Below is a tabulation of the rating of arithmetic lessons as to 
technique of teachers and reactions of class: 

Teachers (15 in number in 25 Classes) 

Yes No Somewhat 

No. of Classes in which Teachers 

1. Repeated answers - 13 1 

2. Repeated questions 2 14 

3. Required definite answers 14 

4. Required accurate answers 14 1 

5. Completed pupils' answers 9 

6. Asked leading questions 4 7 

7. Asked pumping questions 1 11 

8. Interrupted pupils when reciting 1 11 2 

9. Taught from text book I' 1 

10. Associated advance steps with past class work.... 3 1 

11. Motivated lesson 1 

12. Used illustrative material 2 

13. Suggested material for solution of problems 1 

14. Assigned by topics - 1 

Pupils in 25 Classes 

No. of Classes in which Pupils 

1. Were interested 16 •> 

2. Asked questions ;! 3 

3. Volunteered information or suggestions 1 4 

4. Showed other signs of self activity 1 2 

5. Recited fluently - H 

6. Talked aimlessly 8 

7. Gave incorrect answers - — •■ ! J 

8. Gave hazy answers 6 

9. Answered in words of book - 

10. Pupils co-operated with teachers and class-mates 4 

Physical Exercises. 

Some of the most beautiful exercises seen were those in physical 
drill. They were conducted by regular class teachers, often two classes 
and two teachers at a time. Those in courts and gymnasia, particularly 
the latter, were by all odds the best, Frequently pupils acted as 
masters of ceremonies, some directing from the front and some presid- 
ing at the victrola. The greater number of exercises seen were ac- 
companied by music from the victrola. It may be said that all physical 
drills of the types observed were beautiful and cannot fail to develop 
grace of motion and posture in pupils. This is particularly true of the 
"scarf" exercises. Some of the exercises in courts and gymnasia 
were sufficiently strenuous to produce perspiration, but on the whole 
one could not help feeling that something more strenuous and making 
greater demands on the large muscles is needed for the boys and girls 
in the upper grades. This would necessitate gymnasia and shower 
baths in all large elementary schools. Disraeli said "Public health is 
the foundation on which rests the happiness of the people and the 
strength of the state," H is equally true that the foundation stone of 
school efficiency is physical training — in its large sense — under 
hygienic conditions. 

i in 



Folk Dancing at the Mason School 




Physical Culture at the Mason School. 




147 



The advantage of physical exercises in the class-room wherever 
there is mechanical ventilation with insufficient atmospheric humidity 
is, to say the least, doubtful. It tends to parch further the mucous 
surfaces of throat and lungs and render them more liable to infection. 
Where there is no mechanical ventilation and the windows can be 
thrown open without disarranging the whole system, short physical 
exercises in the class-room while it is being flooded with fresh air from 
the outside are highly desirable. 



Civics. 

The text book used as the basis of civics instruction appears to be 
an excellent one. The teaching based on it, as far as observed, was 
good. In some if not all schools the pupils ' clubs supplement extremely 
well the work in civics. As in all school systems in the country, how- 
ever, a revolution is approaching in the teaching of civics. The civics 
class of the future will be a laboratory and observation station in com- 
munity life. Ways will be developed in which children can actually 
function as citizens. Some years ago, I am told, the schools of Water- 
bury introduced a course in "Waterbury. " The schools of Akron 
might well offer a course in "Akron" which could be made the point 
of departure for civics, history, physical geography, commercial geog- 
raphy, industrial geography. Not only should the schools be taken 
into the life of Akron but the life of Akron should be taken into the 
public schools. Whatever of Akron cannot be taken into the schools 
should be eliminated from Akron. Why should there be anything in 
Akron which at some stage in the course the children of Akron should 
not know about? Why should the children of Akron at some stage 
in their course not know of everything in Akron ? If these are not pre- 
sented in time and in the right way in school they will be presented too 
late or in the wrong way after school. Following is an abstract from 
the Manual of Instruction : 

"The Akron child is born into the Akron environment. Every- 
thing in this city, both material and spiritual, whether natural or 
artificial, is exerting its influence upon him. The beauties and de- 
formities of nature and art, as shown in the community, are at- 
tracting or repelling him. The industrial and commercial activi- 
ties of the* community are challenging his thought. The minister- 
ing kindnesses of his family and friends touch a responsive chord 
in his affections. The rights of property and the restraints im- 
posed by law are brought to his attention. All these influences, 
together with every other that might be mentioned, are doing their 
work in the education of the child." 

The school in co-operation with the home should take charge of this 
work. 

More important than the formal teaching of citizenship in the class- 
room are the results in social efficiency of the pupils' organizations 

148 



found in the Akron schools. Perhaps the most prominent types among 
these are the literary clubs, whose objects may be stated as follows : 

1 — To teach the use of simple parliamentary rules ; 

2 — To develop the ability to discuss topics in a polite manner ; 

3 — To develop initiative and self-control in the individual ; 

4— To stimulate thought and investigation of things beyond the 

text-books ; 
5 — To create school and civic pride by awakening an interest in 

local affairs of the community; 
6 — To develop the ability to conduct public meetings. 

The writer observed with pleasure a regular meeting of one of these 
societies. To obtain the highest returns it is always necessary to al- 
low the greatest freedom possible to the pupils — even to the extent of 
allowing them to make mistakes. 

Eighteen schools, including the three High Schools, report such clubs. 
Most of them are in Grades 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11, although they are found 
as low as the 5th and as high as the 12th. 

Eleven schools report girls' glee clubs and nine, boys' glee clubs. 
The membership of the girls' totalled 319 (including one mixed club) 
and of the boys', 147. Several of the clubs meet daily. 

Eleven schools reported 11 orchestras, with a total membership of 
95. Twelve, baseball; 7, foot-ball; 10, boys' basket-ball; 7, girls' 
basket-ball ; and 3 athletic clubs of other kinds are reported. Five 
schools have Boy Scout organizations and five have girls' clubs of 
various sorts. Among other students' clubs may be mentioned: 

1 Little Mothers' Club. 

1 Guardian Club. 

1 Social Club. 

1 Civics Club. 

2 Garden Clubs. 

2 Folk Dancing Clubs. 

2 Military Companies (High School). 

2 Fraternitv Clubs (High School). 

1 Radio Club. 

With the increase in the number of auditoria and special rooms, this 
work can and should be greatly increased. 

Music. 

The instruction in music and its supervision in the Akron elementary 
schools, as far as observed, is excellent in every respect. The only 
point of weakness noted was the insufficiency in the amount of super- 
vision. As the number of victrolas increases the work in musical ap- 
preciation will be extended, and as the schools are supplied with 
auditoria the number of orchestras will increase and their work im- 
prove. Excellent and entirely voluntary lessons in orchestra work 
were observed. There can be no doubt that the increase in this work 
will have a powerful effect on the influence of schools in socializing 
neighborhoods and will contribute greatly to the power of co-operation 
and the spirit of community service on the part of pupils. 

149 



Art Work. 

The art work observed in the schools of Akron was of a high quality. 
Of peculiar interest was the advertising poster work recently intro- 
duced into Grades 7 and 8. The extract from field notes above gives 
an idea of the character of this work. It would be difficult to conceive 
of any school work more highly motivated from the pupils' standpoint. 
Pupil interest in all exercises observed was intense, the discipline was 
more informal and more really educational than that of any other 
classes observed in Akron, save those in manual training and cooking. 
The opportunities of co-ordination between language work and this 
art work are legion and should help greatly to "realize" the written 
language work of the grades. Below is a series of cuts illustrating the 
art work in the Akron schools. It will be seen at once that considerable 
opportunity is offered for motor expression, and that the material is 
well related to other subjects of the Course of Study and in many cases 
to the community environment. When shop-work and cooking are 
added to the Course of Study art instruction as at present carried on 
will be greatly helped and the pupils wil be given even better oppor- 
tunity for motor expression and for getting a real insight into the real 
activities of the workaday world. 



ART WORK IN THE AKRON SCHOOLS. 




OCTO BE* 



I 2 % 4 5 6 ; 1 



/8V' 



* A A'O -<Vo 



i . • . - • - - - 




150 



ART WORK IN THE AKRON SCHOOLS. 





151 



ART WORK IN THE AKRON SCHOOLS. 





152 



ART WORK IN THE AKRON SCHOOLS. 





153 



Language. 

The oral language observed in the lower grades was excellent. It was 
related very closely to the needs of childhood and its capacity for ex- 
pression. The opportunities for oral expression in connection with pupil 
administration in the upper grades could hardly be surpassed. The 
written language work observed was mechanically good but there was 
seen no such creative joy or freedom in expression as was seen in the 
oral work. One exercise seen in composition — described above — was 
entirely destructive of all initiative or originality. An effort was ob- 
served throughout to choose subjects which the teachers thought the 
children would like. No attempt was observed to see what the children 
liked by leaving them entire liberty of action. Any written language 
work to be really educative — not merely instructional — must be crea- 
tive and original from the standpoint of the pupil. Better one ex- 
pression of a thought that the child warms to as his own than a dozen 
expressions of thought which somebody else expects him to warm to 
and which might under other conditions be of extreme interest to him. 

The general discussion of language in the official Manual of Instruc- 
tion is in most respects above criticism and indeed represents an ad- 
vance on both current thought and practice, but there is one passage 
which it would seem some teachers may have interpreted too narrowly 
and without giving due weight to the immediately adjacent context. 
It is as follows: "The branches provided in this Course of Study 
furnish abundant material for thought and its accompanying expres- 
sion. It will not be necessary for the teacher to establish a new line 
of work, disconnected from the other work of the school, to get ma- 
terial for language. The school life affords the material." In so far 
as this instructs against establishing an unco-ordinated subject matter 
in the Course of Study it is of course salutory. But if it mean that 
the subject matter of compositions are to be limited exclusively to what 
belongs directly to school life, it would seem to interfere with the tree 
expression of the life of childhood. Freedom is the essence of creative 
art, If school life included all of life for the child the prescription 
could do no harm, but until this is the case it must unnecessarily 
limit. Does not composition supply rather an opportunity to bring 
extra-school life into the school, to invigorate the life of the school, 
to make school more real and more vital to the child? If a child is 
more interested in school processes than in any others, well and erood ; 
let him write according to his interest. If not, well and good; let 
him write according to his interest, 

No doubt the Manual of Instruction does not mean to say other- 
wise. The following excerpts would seem to bear this out: 

"Stimulated by the models in the text book, the thoughts and feel- 
ings of children upon the other branches of study in the schools, 
as well as upon their everyday experiences, outside of school, 
should lie modified and clarified, and then expressed in the good 
forms indicated by the models. Oral composition is even more 
valuable than written." 

154 



"Even the bright boy and girl who are leaders among their com- 
panions in everything requiring quickness of wit may become in- 
sufferably dreary whenever they attempt to speak or write in the 
English class. Pupils in the third and fourth grades in the schools 
often show as much originality, brightness, and power as those in 
the eighth and ninth grades. It is this lack of growth and this 
uniform mediocrity that should be combated. Better original, 
fresh thought, strongly put, in a straightforward way, even though 
there be many errors in grammar and punctuation, than mincing 
nothingness in the best form." 

"When a child has a thought, really his own, and is seized with a 
desire to express it to others, his words become more than the 
clothing of the thought, they become the thought itself by partak- 
ing of its character." 

"Then teachers should plan, as far as possible, to make the lan- 
guage exercises opportunities for the pupils to express their own 
thoughts, to some one, for a purpose." 

The Manual further says : 

"The teacher must select subjects in which the children are inter- 
ested or in which they can acquire an interest. She will be helped 
in making the selection by asking herself such questions as these : 
(a) What do the pupils like best? (b) What do they watch with 
most eagerness? (c) What do they think most about? (d) What 
subjects of conversation do they listen to most attentively? (e) 
Which of their studies are they most alert in? (f) What are the 
social interests of the neighborhood? (g) What are the predomi- 
nant interests of the neighborhood? 

"If generalities are to be avoided, great care should be exercised 
in the wording of subjects. Subjects must be limited : Instead of 
'Flowers,' use 'How I Prepared My Pansy Bed.' Instead of 'Fish- 
ing,' use 'How I Caught My First Bass.' Instead of 'Hamilton's 
Financial Policy,' use 'How Hamilton's Financial Policy Bound 
the Rich to the Government.' Instead of 'Foot Ball,' use 'How 
to Make a Drop Kick.' Instead of 'The Doctrine of States' 
Rights,' use 'How I Felt When I Heard the Webster-Hayne De- 
bate.' " 

This is good but in addition large opportunity should be granted, 
even if it spoils the symmetry of the teacher's plan, for pupils of all 
grades to select with complete freedom the topics about which they 
wish to talk or write. 

Every citizen of Akron who is interested in the teaching of English 
should read over carefully the Manual's general discussion of lan- 
guage. It is an able treatment, understandable by every one, and is 
particularly valuable in its consideration of the relative place of form 
and content, the dangers of formalism in language work, the correc- 
tion of compositions and the place of "Automatic School Administra- 
tion" in language work. 

155 



Spelling. • 

One strong feature of the spelling course in Akron is the minimum 
list of 120 words, ten of which are to be thoroughly learned during 
each year of the school course. This is a good list, evidently selected 
on scientific principles. Another excellent feature is the device de- 
scribed in one of the lesson field notes above, by which words the chil- 
dren can already spell are eliminated so that attention may be concen- 
trated by each child on the words he cannot spell. Sight, hearing, and 
the muscular sense are all appealed to so that one sense may enforce 
the others and so that the peculiarities of all children may be consid- 
ered. It is doubtful whether syllabication is taught more thoroughly 
anywhere. Words for spelling are also selected from the subject mat- 
ter of lessons in other subjects. One study recitation observed was a 
model of what can be done in helping pupils to study spelling. As in 
nearly all school systems, however, the lessons observed were mostly 
too mechanical and lacking in interest. In fact the subject seems to 
be accepted frankly as a purely mechanical one. The meaning of a 
word was rarely if ever referred to in the classes seen, and their use 
in sentences was not at all prominent. This presumably was taken 
care of in other classes. 

It is a doubtful point, however, whether spelling can be taught well 
except in very close conjunction with other language subjects in the 
course. Perhaps a suggestion might be made that the teaching of 
spelling in the upper grades be more from the functional viewpoint. 
The more ways one can look at a word the more interesting it be- 
comes, the more easily it is learned, and the more firmly it is retained. 
The word in a sense is a living, changing, individual thing, with a 
past, a present, and a future. Might not spelling be taught from the 
word-study viewpoint, which would include the past and present func- 
tions of the word and its etymology or history? The old study of 
simple Latin, Greek and Saxon roots might well be revived in ele- 
mentary schools as a vitalizing force in the teaching of spelling. When 
the spelling of English is finally put upon a rational instead of an im- 
pressionistic basis, years will be saved in the teaching of reading and 
spelling. In the meantime, spelling will remain one of the most diffi- 
cult subjects in the curriculum to teach well. 

3. Omissions from the Elementary School Course in Akron. 

As pointed out in a previous chapter, the noticeable omissions from 
the Elementary School Course in most schools of Akron are : 

Manual Training. 
Household Arts. 
Gymnasium Athletics, and 
Swimming. 

It is true that the Bowen School and the Jennings, which have 
Bigh School grades, offer all these features except that of swimming 
;iiid that the elementary grades in high school buildings have some 
of these advantages. At the most, however, these facilities affect a 

15G 



small proportion of the total elementary school population. For ex- 
ample, only 87 boys in the elementary grades receive instruction in 
wood-working, and only 94 girls receive instruction in Household Arts, 
including cooking. On April 29, 1917, there were 623 pupils in Grade 
VI11-A ; 492 pupils in Grade VIII-B ; 754 pupils in Grade VII-A ; 704 
pupils in Grade VII-B ; 954 pupils in Grade VI-A ; and 790 pupils in 
Grade VI-B. In the High Schools 830 boys received instruction in 
wood-working, forge work, etc., and 1053 girls in dress-making, sew- 
ing, cookiug, costume designing, house designing, furniture designing 
and kindred subjects. 

It should go without saying that every boy in Grades 7 and 8 should 
receive Manual Training instruction, at least to the extent of the 
Avood-working, that boys of 13 and over in the lower grades should 
also receive such instruction, that all girls in Grades 7 and 8 should 
be taught Household Arts, including cooking and the selection of 
foods, clothing and household furnishings, and that all girls of 13 and 
over in the lower grades should have at least equal opportunities. 

Every school which has 300 boys and 300 girls in Grades 7 and 8 
could easily employ full-time teachers in Manual Training and House- 
hold Arts. As these teachers cover courses which would be of value 
to children who have left school and to young adults they should not 
be expected to teach the regular classes for more than five hours each 
day, so as to make possible evening and Saturday classes for com- 
munity extension work. 

Where schools are of smaller size they might be grouped about a 
central school which would contain the necessary, rooms and equip- 
ment. 

In parts of the city where buildings may be erected in the near 
future, attention should be given to the advantages of the Junior 
High School work which covers the work of Grades 7, 8 and 9. Such 
a school might have shops and kitchens which could supply the Manual 
Training and Domestic Art needs of surrounding elementary schools, 
some of which might not go further than the end of the Sixth Grade. 
As the teaching periods in these subjects are longer than in ordinary 
classes there would be no appreciable loss of time even if it was neces- 
sary to send . classes from an elementary school to a Junior High 
School during the periods from school opening to recess, from recess 
to the noon closing, and for the afternoon session. Where all Grades 
7 and 8 of a locality were contained in a Junior High School, together 
with the Grade 9 children from the district, the work could be put on 
a semi-departmental basis. 

In new parts of the city where there is, as yet, no school construc- 
tion, it would seem well to study the possibilities of the plan by which 
independent school units are grouped along the sides of a large square, 
around a central building for administration, class-rooms for special 
teaching, auditoria, gymnasia, and swimming pools. Such a plan would 
allow the unifying of the school life of every child from the First 
Grade to the end of the 12th, so that there would be no artificial break 
at the end of the elementary school period and so that each child would 
receive every incentive possible to complete the public school course. 

157 



A Cooking Class at the Bowen School. 




A Sewing- Class at the Bowen School. 



' ' Mb & % *"* 
■fin mAim ^^H ; \1B ■ 




Lf tfiilliJMll^Bi IHBH^ jflHUHsfli 





A Wood-working* Class at the Bowen School. 




358 



Some "shift" plan not involving departmentalization (see pages 
53-56) could be used with either of these types. 

Everyone who has taught in a High School must be fully sensible 
of the disadvantages which complete departmentalizing entails. These 
disadvantages are greatly increased when the system is applied to ele- 
mentary grades. In the High Schools, the demands of the times, the 
influence of our higher institutions of learning, and the immense in- 
crease in the subject matter taught, make the departmental system a 
necessity. Among the results of the system which may be combated 
with more or less success in the cases of children of high school age 
are the following: 

1st — When teachers become specialists in any subject they begin to 
lose touch with other subjects, and find it difficult to keep clearly 
in mind a view of the content of the curricula as a whole. 

2nd — Specialists tend to exact from the pupils a greater amount 
of time for their specialty than is warranted, with the results, 
first, that there is competition between teachers for the greatest 
amount possible of the pupils' time, and, second, that in many 
cases, if pupils were to study all the time that their various 
teachers demanded, they would have an insufficient period left 
for recreation and sleep. 

3rd — Complete co-ordination in the different subjects of the course 
is absolutely impossible and even fair co-ordination can be ef- 
fected only by great vigilance and the adoption of special devices.- 
Where a teacher handles all the subjects of the course, except a 
few special ones, she knows just exactly the abilities and limita- 
tions of each member of her class with regard to every subject 
in the course. She can cut down the time to be given to one sub- 
ject and increase the time to be given to another subject by any 
particular pupil. She knows just exactly what is being taught in 
history and when. She knows just exactly what is being taught 
in geography and when. She knows just exactly what is being 
taught in literature and when. She is, therefore, in the position 
of re-enforcing the teaching of one in the teaching of all, and 
tying up the related or common points in all subjects of the cur- 
riculum. Time was when, in a Scotch hamlet, the dominie would 
take a boy from his primer to entrance into the University and 
teach everything from the A, B, C's to differential calculus; but 
that time has gone, never to return. We should be ashamed, how- 
ever, if we cannot give our elementary school teachers a suffi- 
ciently broad basis of scholarship and interest to enable them to 
teach all the subjects of the elementary school course, excepting 
those special subjects which need highly specialized equipment. 

4th — This world is not made on the principle of water-tight com- 
partments. In the world there is actually no such thing as 
geometry, or chemistry, or physics, or arithmetic, or grammar. 
These are all the creation of the logical mind of man who has set 
up these categories to help him in his conquest of nature. They 
are based on logical, not psychological nor natural, distinctions. 

159 



When the average boy graduates from the college, and even from 
the High School, he has lost most of that sense of the unity of 
creation which he may have had as a child. The world for him, 
in effect, is in water-tight compartments and when he gets out 
into the world he is at loss because he cannot find the compart- 
ments. How much more would this be the case if departmental- 
izing were extended down to the kindergarten? 

5th — The only safe basis for any special discipline is a foundation 
of general education, thoroughly related and inter-related in all 
its parts. This principle has been seriously threatened of recent 
years and until we return to the belief that sound specialization 
is only possible on a basis of sound, wide and deep general knowl- 
edge, our specialization is apt to be superficial, inaccurate and un- 
imaginative. 

6th — The good teacher is a specialist in children, not a specialist 
in subjects. The specialist instead of teaching the child usually 
puts the emphasis on teaching the subject. This is noticeable 
even in the teaching of most special subjects in the elementary 
grades, when the children are young and need most careful con- 
sideration of their individual peculiarities. 

There may be conditions where the only way to handle the school 
population in the cramped surroundings available is to adopt some 
variety of the two-platoon system. No satisfactory proof has ever 
been adduced that either the capital or current charges are smaller 
under the two-platoon than under the ordinary system. The basis for 
the claim that such is the case is due to the fact that where schools 
have already auditoria, gymnasia, and swimming pools which are oc- 
cupied but part time, the per capita cost of instruction and of build- 
ings is greatly cut down by the use of the whole plant under the two- 
platoon system. Where all these things have to be supplied there is 
little or no saving. However, buildings may be so remodelled with- 
out extension in floor area that they will hold a greatly increased num- 
ber of children under a two-platoon system. The increased cost of 
plant, however, and the increased number of teachers required to give 
equally satisfactory instruction bring the costs up to normal. The 
great advantage is not in improved instruction but in the possibility 
of accommodating children who could not otherwise be accommodated. 
Wherever they are practicable, the Junior High School or the group 
plan have all the financial advantages of any two-platoon system, with- 
out its apparently inevitable disadvantages. 

If there is a district in Akron which is extremely congested or where 
the necessary land for extension is of a prohibitive price, an experi- 
ment with a two-platoon system could do no harm and might do much 
good. All the extra equipment and special plant would be needed for 
any type of school so that there would be no loss in capital expendi- 
ture. It is possible that some modification of the plan might be worked 
out by which most of the difficulties could be practically solved. In 
any event, a good school of any type is preferable to a poor school of 
the best type. 

160 



The writer is convinced, however, inasmuch as it is preferable on 
purely educational grounds, that some such "shift" system as is out- 
lined on pages 53-56 offers the best solution for congestion and of the 
problems involved in the economic use of physical plant and equip- 
ment. 

III. INSTRUCTION IN THE HIGH SCHOOLS OF AKRON. 

1. General Characteristics. 

In general, the characteristics of the class-room teaching in the 
High Schools of Akron are the same as those of the teaching observed 
in the Elementary Schools, with this difference, that the instruction 
was departmentalized. The operation of pupil administration was 
observed everywhere. As in the elementary schools, all exercises were 
divided into three stages: 

1st — Study-recitation. 
2nd — Individual study. 
3rd — Recitation. 

The observer gained the impression that in the mechanical technique 
of instruction, teaching in the High Schools is not quite equal to that 
of the grades. ' In spirit, in originality of treatment, in naturalness of 
discipline, in consideration for the individuality of the child, the 
High Schools seem fully equal to the elementary schools. 

2. Class-room Observation. 

The number of classes observed was comparatively small so that it 
was not thought advisable to make a detailed analysis of the field 
notes. Excerpts from these notes, however, fully illustrative of the 
work observed, are given below : 

1st— Grade XI-B. 

Number of pupils in the class : 12. 

Subject: Physics. 

Topic : Metric and English Measurements and the Steam Engine. 
The teacher was neat in appearance, vigorous, dignified, and 
seemed to have a sympathetic attitude towards his pupils. He 
spoke in an easy conversational tone of voice, and did not oc- 
cupy an undue amount of the time in talking. 

The small errors in technique so often found in the class-room, 
such as repeating answers and asking leading questions, were not 
observed. The pupils recited fluently and the teacher exacted 
complete and accurate statements. The pupils were interested, 
although several members of the class did not seem sufficiently 
familiar with the subject matter of the lesson. 

If any criticism were to be offered, it would be that the teacher 
was rather too much tied to his text-book. 

161 



2nd— Grade X. 

Number of pupils present : 19. 
Subject : Composition. 
Topic : Description of a Building. 

In personality the teacher of this class was everything that could 
be desired. She was vigorous, sympathetic, dignified, spoke in a 
conversational tone, was enthusiastic herself, and stimulated 
originality and co-operation on the part of the class. No defects 
in the technique of instruction were observed. The teacher was 
particularly successful in motivating her instruction and in as- 
sociating the material with past class work and with the experi- 
ence of her pupils. The opportunity for pupil co-operation was as 
complete as could be desired. Assignments were clear and by 
topics. The pupils were interested, asked questions freely, volun- 
teered suggestions, and read their original compositions with flu- 
ency. The pupils criticized one another's work freely and frankly. 
In the study-recitation period which succeeded the recitation, the 
teacher had^ the pupils read the advance lesson, explaining where 
necessary and emphasizing the important points. The teacher 
ended by requiring members of the class to tell how they proposed 
to study the lesson. 

3rd— Grade X. 

Number of pupils present : 12. 

Subject: Economics (Social Problems and Current Events). 

Topic: The British Drive, and the Allied Commissions Visiting 

Washington. 
The teacher spoke in an easy conversational tone of voice and had 
apparently established sympathetic relations with her class. She 
showed complete mastery of the subject matter and, while ap- 
parently somewhat disturbed by the presence of visitors, developed 
her subject well. This class, perhaps more than any other ob- 
served, was having noteworthy success in the development of 
initiative among the pupils, and the spirit of group co-operation. 
In the study of Current Events, pupils were required to go to the 
board and point out the places mentioned in the daily press. The 
expression of opinion was very frank. Toward the end of the 
period the teacher distributed pamphlets which were reports from 
the different states on Child Labor Legislation. Each pupil was 
to write a resume of the Child Labor Laws of the State assigned 
to him. These reports were obtained, not by the teacher, but by 
the pupils who wrote to Washington and the different State capi- 
tals for the necessary documents. This class was not only a class 
in Current Events, Economics and Sociology, but is doing excel- 
lent work in training for citizenship. 

4th— Grade X. 

Number of pupils present : 8. 
Subject : Modern History. 
Topic : India. 

162 



The teacher had good address and apparently was sympathetic 
toward her class. She spoke in a low tone of voice and did not oc- 
cupy much of the time in talking. The teacher was nervous and 
did hot do herself justice. The pupils seemed interested and 
recited fluently, although somewhat disturbed by the presence of 
visitors. The class had a pupil leader, but as it was necessary for 
the teacher to do considerable of the questioning, there were 
really two leaders. An outline map made on the black-board by 
one of the pupils was used very effectively by the class. The 
class was assigned "Canada" for the next lesson, after finishing 
India. 

5th— Grade IX. 

Number of pupils present : 15. 

Subject : American History. 

Topic : The Spanish- American "War and Succeeding Period. 

The teacher's class presence was excellent and her methods, on the 
whole, good, although occasionally answers were repeated. The 
pupils were much interested, asked questions freely, volunteered 
information and suggestions, and recited with great fluency. The 
recitation was conducted by a pupil and the teacher had very lit- 
tle to say while the pupil was in charge. The answers to some 
of the questions were left in a rather indefinite position, perhaps 
designedly. One of the pupils expressed her mystification with 
regard to the conduct of the Philipinos by asking this question : 
"What's the matter with the Philipinos, anyway?" This was 
typical of the unconventional method of conducting the discus- 
sion. One of the pupils asked this question of another pupil : 
"Compare the work that Roosevelt did in the Spanish-American 
War with what he is trying to do now." During the last ten 
minutes of the exercises, the teacher made the assignment for the 
next lesson and suggested methods of attack. During this part 
of the exercises the pupils asked some very good questions. 

6th— Grade XI. 

Number of pupils present : 20. 
Subject: English Literature. 
Topic : Macbeth. 

This was a recitation conducted by the teacher. The observer, 
however, has never seen an exercise conducted ostensibly by the 
teacher which was really so completely managed by the class. 
The teacher spoke little, asking a question or making a sugges- 
tion here and there. The teacher was fully en rapport with his 
class and his class with him. None of the small mistakes in the 
technique of recitation were observed. The teacher insisted on 
definite and complete answers. He made frequent connections 
with past work done by the class and drew on the personal ex- 
periences and opinions of the pupils to throw light on the ques- 
tions which were being discussed. The teacher not only himself 

163 



showed a power of keen analysis, but was able to secure a criti- 
cal and analytical attitude on the part of the class. The interest 
of every pupil in the class was at white heat, questioning was fre- 
quent and searching, several members of the class offered their 
own points of view. One of the questions at issue was whether 
Shakespeare made a mistake by having Macbeth killed. One boy 
said that a mistake had been made, just as a mistake would be 
made if the Kaiser were put to death instead of being sent to 
St. Helena with Roosevelt as Governor of the Island. Among the 
points discussed by the class were : 

First — Who was blameworthy for the fall of Macbeth — the 
witches, Lady Macbeth, or himself? 

Second — Was Lady Macbeth ambitious for herself or for her hus- 
band? 

Third — Who was responsible for the first murder, the second 
murder, the third murder? 

Fourth— Who should have killed Macbeth? 

Fifth — How should he have been killed? 

One of the boys put the responsibility for Macbeth 's fall on a 
percentage basis. He assigned 15% to Macbeth, 80% to Lady 
Macbeth, and 5% to the witches. Another boy volunteered the 
belief that Macbeth killed Banquo as a grand-stand play. 

This was one of the most lively, natural, and fruitful exercises 
observed in Akron. 

An assignment for the next day's composition was made at the 
end of the period, as follows: A defense of Lady Macbeth or a 
newspaper account of the banquet. 

The observer was particularly interested in the close co-operation 
which is being effected between the domestic art instruction and the 
art classes. 

In addition to these exercises, classes were seen in German, sewing, 
folk dancing, art, geometry, gardening, Latin (Cicero), chorus work, 
etc. At one of the High Schools, the observer was so fortunate as to 
be invited to a lunch prepared and served by young ladies of the 
school. 

The lessons in German observed were particularly good. Practically 
all the class work was conducted in German. Several members of the 
classes showed considerable power in the oral composition work. 

One class had organized a moving picture company for the illustra- 
tion of the text being read. It is true that the "film" was wound on 
rollers, but the results were capital and every member of the class 
displayed interest. 

164 



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The important effect of the High Schools of Akron on the com- 
munity life is shown by the following table : 

Number graduated in 1916 242 

Number who went immediately into some employment 109 

Number who went to college 101 

Number who went to normal school 13 

Number who went to some other school for special training.... 11 
Number who neither went to work nor took further training.... 8 
Over half of the number of graduating classes went to some high 
institution of learning and 45% went immediately into industry or 
business. 

3. The Relative Weight of the High School and the Elementary 
School in the Life of the Community. 

The clearest impression that one gets in comparing the High Schools 
with the Elementary Schools of Akron is the relative richness of the 
content of the High School Course of Study. The opportunities for 
motor expression offered by the elementary schools are not to be com- 
pared for a moment with those afforded to the pupils of the High 
Schools. 

All High School boys in Akron have access to instruction in several 
forms of manual work, including wood-working, and all High School 
girls have access to thorough instruction in cooking, dietetics, house- 
hold economics, art in the home, and sewing. The physical instruc- 
tion given in the High Schools is strong. Excellent special teachers 
are employed and the character of instruction offered is fully up to 
standard. All High School buildings have auditoria which, to a large 
extent, form the centers of pupil and, to some extent, of community 
life. On the average the High Schools function much more strongly 
as centers of community interest than do the elementary schools. 

When it is borne in mind that every child goes to the elementary 
school, that out of every one hundred children who enter the ele- 
mentary schools not over from 15 to 20 graduate from the High 
Schools (a proportion which is away above the average for the 
country), and that for every High School center there are seven or 
eight elementary school centers, it must surely be admitted that the 
time has come for change in emphasis which will lead : 

1. To the increase of the motor elements in elementary school in- 
struction ; 

2. To the increase of opportunities in the elementary schools for 
boys and girls to discover their individual aptitudes; 

3. To the equipment of each school building to serve as a center 
not only of child but of adult education ; 

4. To the planning or re-planning of every elementary school so 
that they may serve as the main social centers of their various 
districts. 

Only by the adoption of a program like this can the people of Akron 
reap the fullest returns from their investment in school plant and 
equipment. 

166 



4. The Night Schools of Akron. 

The Night Schools of Akron owe their existence to private en- 
deavor, the Board of Education not having sufficient funds to support 
them. The financial support is supplied by the Chamber of Commerce, 
the supervision and control by the Board of Education. 

During 1916-1917, 25 classes of foreigners were taught at five 
public school centers. These classes were held for two-hour sessions 
for four nights a week from October 2nd to April 19th. The instruc- 
tion was mostly — as it should be — in the English Language and Citi- 
zenship. Classes were held in Mechanical Drawing also. The results 
as far as these can be judged by statistics were excellent. 

The 1300 students enrolled represented 43 nationalities. Most of 
these came from the large factories, who co-operated with the man- 
agement in careful follow-up work and in many cases rewarded ef- 
fort by promotion. What the success of the night schools means to 
Akron can hardly be over-estimated. The concluding paragraph of 
the report of Supervisor Gould illustrates well the spirit of the work 
and the outlook of those responsible for its direction: 

"I wish to emphasize these facts: First, that the night schools 
have been a real melting pot for the alien in Akron. Second, 
that the extent of the work has been very broad and has reached 
nearly every organization in the city. Third, that the schools 
have been instrumental in making citizens of many aliens. Fourth, 
that they have sown the seed of advancement and Americanization 
which will grow and spread. Fifth, that hundreds of aliens have 
been taught to speak and to read and to write the American 
language." 

"In conclusion, permit me to offer the following recommendations: 
First, that the public night schools be continued year after year. 
Second, that a closer interest and co-operation be developed be- 
tween the employer and the schools. Third, that a text book 
emphasizing local conditions be prepared and used in the schools." 

The following recommendations are made with regard to night 
school and related work : 

a. That the support as well as the control of the night schools be 
assumed by the Board of Education at the earliest possible moment ; 

b. That the night schools be affiliated with the community center 
work which should be carried on in all the large elementary and 
High Schools, and that they be under the direct supervision of the 
3rd Assistant Superintendent, recommended on page 173 to take 
charge of all special school activities ; 

c. That the scope of the work be increased so as to use as much as 
possible of the expensive High School equipment and similar equip- 
ment to be supplied later to the elementary schools; 

d. That arrangements be made with employers so that youths under 
20 can receive day instruction for from 3 to 6 hours per week in 
lieu of night instruction, which is very hard upon growing young 

167 



men and women and gives results not comparable in any way to 
those of day classes; 

e. That the recommendations of the Supervisor of Night Schools 
with regard to a local text-book be carried out. 

5. Vocational Training Through Co-operation Between the High 
Schools and Commercial and Industrial Concerns. 

Of recent years the development of co-operative courses by which 
students receive their theoretical training in the schools and practical 
training in the vocations in the work-shops and counting houses, has 
been phenomenal. The City of Cincinnati stands in the forefront in 
this respect, but there is now a long list of communities which have 
adopted the principle. 

Extremely rich cities may be able to finance the construction of a 
sufficient number of workshops to take care of all the shop work of 
the boys and girls demanding vocational training, but for the com- 
munity of ordinary resources the only way to meet the community's 
needs is to make use of the resources of the school for formal in- 
struction and of the expensive equipment of private industry for 
practical instruction. The suspicion is gradually dawning on a great 
many people that a method which was adopted as a result of economic 
necessity may, in fact, be the best method of vocational training, both 
from the standpoint of education and of industry. The bringing of the 
school into the factory will undoubtedly improve the hygienic condi- 
tions and the moral tone of industrial establishments, while the bring- 
ing of the workshop into the school will tend to "realize" school in- 
struction and give the boys and girls a picture of the actual condi- 
tions they will have to face when they go out into the world. In the 
long run, the co-operative system is bound to give the quietus to the 
"w 1 ite collar ideal" of large numbers of our youth. 

Whether the industries and commercial undertakings of Akron are 
of such a nature as to make possible co-operation between the shops -and 
offices and the schools for educational purposes can be determined only 
as a result of investigation on the spot, carried on by those who would 
have to work any co-operative arrangement which might be estab- 
lished. Such a study would be well worth while and should be per- 
fectly feasible in a city with a Normal School, well developed High 
Schools, a University, a live Chamber of Commerce, a Bureau of Munici- 
pal Research, and many prosperous manufacturing and commercial 
concerns. 

6. The Schools in Summer. 

The writer regrets that he was not able to inspect the play ground 
work carried on by the Play Ground Association during the summer. 
Several photographs are shown, however, illustrative of the char- 
acter of the work. The whole summer program can be greatly 
strengthened if the recommendation of this report be adopted calling 
for the appointment of an Assistant Superintendent in charge of special 
activities. 

168 



An Activity Worth Developing 1 . 




Three Pageant Pictures. 




169 





170 



IV. EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION AND SUPERVI- 
SION OF INSTRUCTION IN AKRON. 

That the administration of purely educational matters and the sup- 
ervision of class-room instruction in Akron are conducted by the pro- 
fessional authority without undue interference from the lay authority 
is very evident. As far as the observer could determine, no considera- 
tions other than what is conceived to be in the best interests of the 
children are allowed to influence the educational policy. 

The professional administrative and supervisory staff consists of: 
One Superintendent of Instruction. 
Two Supervisors of Music, and 
Three Supervisors of Drawing and Art 
all giving full time to the work. How such a small staff has been able 
to get the results which are actually obtained was the cause of per- 
petual amazement to the observer. It should, of course, be borne in 
mind that the principals of the High Schools and of the large elemen- 
tary schools are supervising principals. The elementary school princi- 
pals give on the average 16.7 hours per week out of 39.5 hours to 
general class-room supervision. (See p. 217.) Many of the principals 
have had wide training and experience. Only the most complete ac- 
cord between the Superintendent and the principals could make it pos- 
sible for one man even to attempt to supervise the work of 576 teachers 
even when, as in Akron, the principals are free from routine work and 
teaching for a considerable part of each day. As it is, the Superin- 
tendent of Instruction often works from 6 :30 in the morning until 6 
at night, without a luncheon period. He clears off routine matters in 
the early part of the morning and after school closes in the afternoon. 
For the greater part of the five-hour school day he is in the school 
buildings and the class-rooms. Each week, on the average, the Superin- 
tendent puts in from 20 to 25 hours in class-room supervision, 5 hours 
in clerical work, 5 hours in teachers' meetings, 3 hours in meeting 
parents at his office, 10 hours in purely business administration, 5 
hours in committee meetings and 5 hours in general functions con- 
nected with the welfare of the community. It is much to be doubted 
whether a system of equal size can be found where the Superintendent 
of Schools actually does as much class-room supervision as is the case 
in Akron. When one considers that in the Superintendent's office 
there is only one employee to assist in keeping the records and to 
handle the correspondence and take charge of the telephone, and that 
the work on the switchboard for one period of the day is actually done 
by the Superintendent himself, it is evident that the results obtained 
can only be at the expense of the Superintendent's vitality. It would 
appear that the present conditions have grown up as the result of two 
factors : 

1st — Until comparatively recently the system was of a size which 
would enable one man to keep his mind upon most of the de- 
tails of school administration without undue demands upon 
his time and strength; 

171 



2nd — As the system has grown the financial pressure has been so 
great that apparently it has been thought wise to economize at 
the expense of the supervisory function. 

The system has reached and more than reached the limits of its 
elasticity. It would be impossible to extend the work of the schools 
without increasing the supervisory force. In fact the present super- 
visory functions could not be carried on except for the fact that the 
present staff has grown up with the system. The very same staff com- 
ing into office now, new to the conditions, would be swamped. It 
would be the part of wisdom to make the required reconstruction now 
before it is forced by the logic of stern necessity. 

The effects of the present conditions on the school system may be 
summarized as follows : 

1st — The necessary uniformity in the system has to be accom- 
plished by regulation rather than by suggestion and co-operation 
as the result of plans worked out between the Superintendent, 
supervisors, principals and teachers, through extended study and 
conference. (This does not mean, of course, that there are not 
meetings between the Superintendent, supervisors, principals and 
teachers. The data given as to the use of the time of the Superin- 
tendent, principals and teachers shows that considerable time is 
given to teachers' and principals' meetings. The supervisory 
force, however, is not sufficiently large to make these meetings 
function fully in the management of the Akron schools.) 

2nd — The fact that the Superintendent has no Assistant Superin- 
tendents deprives the system of a sufficient number of different 
points of view on various educational problems. Any system to 
be really alive and growing must allow room for an adequate 
amount of leadership. Without this it is possible to obtain uni- 
formity which may or may not be in the interests of educational 
efficiency, but it is practically impossible to obtain the sort of 
uniformity which allows for free play in all parts of the machine 
where rigidity is not essential. 

3rd — The time and energy of the Superintendent is so largely con- 
sumed in attending to the multitudinous needs of each hour that 
he can have little opportunity for the working out of the larger 
educational policies and those larger relations with the community 
which constitute him, as it were, the community leader and spokes- 
man on educational topics, and the connecting link between the 
community and the school. The most effective creative work 
demands freedom from anxiety and the interruption resulting 
from petty details. That in spite of the tremendous growth of 
the system and the increasing financial demands, the Superintend- 
ent has been able to secure the results in class-room instruction 
described in preceding pages, is a tribute to his faithfulness and 
to his tremendous grasp of details and power of sustained work. 
It is evident, however, that the present policy is extremely short- 
sighted and unjust to the supervisory staff, to the principals, the 
teachers, the pupils, and the taxpayers. 

172 



4th — Owing to the small size of the supervisory staff and the con- 
sequent impossibility of securing the necessary equivalence, though 
not identity, of the various work of the schools through consul- 
tation and study, it has not been found possible to accord to the 
various school principals the amount of independent leadership 
and, therefore, of responsibility which they are able to carry. 
Such a decentralization of authority and responsibility can only 
be worked out safely where there are a sufficient number of points 
of contact and avenues of personal communication between the 
Superintendent and the principals and teachers; but where it can 
be accomplished the vitalizing effect upon principals, teachers and 
children is immediate and salutary. The character of the service 
rendered always improves with the delegation of increased power 
and responsibility. Free American citizens with initiative and in- 
dependence of thought can be developed only by teachers and' 
principals who themselves are conscious of their freedom and their 
responsibility for exercising initiative. The more freedom and 
initiative which can be left to the teaching force, consistent with 
the legitimate demands for equivalence and uniformity, the better 
for the human product of the public schools. 

5th — The predominance of the feminine element in the teaching 
force of Akron might be modified to the advantage of the com- 
munity if one of the Assistant Superintendents suggested above 
were a man of understanding, ability and experience in the pro- 
fession. Of the 576 teachers and principals in the employ of the 
Akron Board of Education, 524 are women. Every regular class- 
room teacher in the elementary schools is a woman and of the 
whole teaching force of the elementary schools, numbering 461, 
only 8 are men. Failing the necessary financial support to intro- 
duce a larger number of men teachers into the grades, the appoint- 
ment of a strung man as first Assistant Superintendent — as sug- 
gested above — would go a long way to remedy the weakness. 

The following organization of the supervisory force is suggested : 

1st — A Superintendent of Schools, having the general oversight of 
the system ; 

2nd — An Assistant Superintendent of Schools, preferably a man, 
having charge of the supervision of instruction in the Grammar 
Grades ; 

3rd — An Assistant Superintendent, preferably a woman, having 
charge of the co-ordination of instruction in the primary grades ; 

4th — An Assistant Superintendent, preferably a man, to have 
supervisory charge of all special school activities and community 
center work ; 

5th — A sufficient number of supervisors of special subjects, such 
as art work, domestic art, manual training, music, etc., to secure 
the best results in co-operation with the various principals and 
teachers of the regular classes. 

173 



School Studies and Educational Tests. 

Surveys of various features of the Akron schools have been made 
by principals and reported at principals' meetings. Keports of other 
surveys have been studied for comparative purposes. New devices, 
new processes and experiments in education have been discussed by 
the principals as they have arisen. All tests held in the system are 
tabulated and the results distributed to the various buildings, and are 
often considered at regular meetings. 

Normal school students are trained to make vision, hearing and 
temperature tests and are given a general insight into the Binet-Simon 
standards. Principals are equipped to make these tests in actual prac- 
tice, as well as those in vision, hearing and temperature. The Binet- 
Simon tests are now under the jurisdiction of the specialist of the 
Health Department in mental tests. 



V. EDUCATIONAL RECORDS AND REPORTS IN AKRON. 

The completeness and thoroughness of the education records in Ak- 
ron should be a great source of satisfaction to the supporters of the 
public schools. Not only are the routine records of attendance, pro- 
motion, etc., sufficient for administrative purposes, but for fifteen years 
Akron has had in full operation the system by which each child has an 
individual record card for his whole school course. Many communities 
have not yet adopted the individual record card with the result that 
in Akron, which receives so many children from outside, the records 
of many children are incomplete. The value of these cards for ad- 
ministrative purposes is, therefore, diminished. Nevertheless the pass- 
ing on of the cards with the pupils, gives the new teachers an insight 
into the individual needs of the pupils which could not otherwise be 
obtained. The reports of over-age children based on these records are 
very complete and contain statements of the causes of over-age. Prob- 
ably for the reason of the incompleteness of the individual card rec- 
ords, reports on retardation, or slow progress through the grades, 
have not so far been made. The relations between over-age and re- 
tardation are explained below. 

Reports on elimination of pupils, i. e., their dropping out from school 
before completing the course, have not been issued. A very slight ad- 
dition to the present records would make this possible. In spite of the 
raising of the working age there can be no doubt that this information 
would be valuable as a basis for follow-up work. Many children might 
possibly be saved for school by removing the causes of their dropping 
out. Many children who must drop out might be greatly benefited if 
the school were to continue its relations with them until some years 
after leaving school. 

The most regrettable lack, hoAvever, in school reporting in Akron is 
the absence of an Annual School Report to the citizens giving, in lan- 
guage that the layman can understand, the salient facts as to how 
their children are being educated, what the schools need and why, and 
how the taxpayers' money from taxes and bond issues is being spent. 
A report of intense human interest, based on the wealth of material 

174 



readily available, could be issued annually or quarterly, or both. The 
cost in dollars or time would be infinitesimal compared with the good 
which would result. The annual and quarterly report, if properly pre- 
pared and written, is one of the best methods by which people's 
trustees may take the people into their confidence. One of the greatest 
causes of suspicion and lack of sympathy in all communities is the 
absence of the necessary information at the right time and in the 
right form. Adequate knowledge and understanding produce sympa- 
thy, sympathy enables effective co-operation, co-operation engenders 
sympathy and sympathy enlightens knowledge and produces under- 
standing. The firm establishment of such a wholesome circle in Ak- 
ron is the first step in a community program of education. 



VI. PROMOTION OF SCHOOL CHILDREN IN AKRON. 

1. General. 

Paragraph 58 of the Manual of the Board of Education of Akron 
reads as follows : 

"CONTROL EXAMINATIONS: He (the Superintendent of In- 
struction) shall fix the time and prescribe the mode of promotion 
from class to class, and determine the conditions thereof, and shall 
prepare the examination questions when any such are required for 
promotion to the High School, so that they may be equal and uni- 
form throughout all the schools. He is also authorized to con- 
duct such other examinations, and at such times as in his judg- 
ment may tend to promote the best interests of the schools. In 
conducting said examinations, and in ascertaining their results, 
he may require the aid of such teachers as he may call upon for 
the purpose." 

It appears that the promotions below Grade VIII-A are in the hands 
of the various principals and teachers and that promotion from the 
Grades into the High School is determined as the result of the term 
marks given by the teachers, and the mark on uniform examinations 
set by the Superintendent. 

With the small supervisory staff this procedure is probably neces- 
sary in order to secure the required measure of uniformity. With a 
supervisory staff as outlined above this would no longer be necessary 
as it would be possible then to standardize the work of the schools in- 
stead of attempting to standardize the work of the pupils. Uniformity 
in the sense of identity or partial identity is not necessary. All that 
is absolutely necessary is equivalence of work. The ability to go from 
grade to grade does not depend so much on the possession of a uni- 
form body of facts as on the development of the ability to organize 
knowledge and to adapt one's self to new conditions. It is quite con- 
ceivable that varying emphasis should be placed on the different parts 
of the course of study in various parts of the City of Akron. It is 
well understood that education must begin "where children are." As 
a matter of fact, this varies according to the children's environment 
and therefore the course of study might be expected to vary accord- 



ingly. There is no doubt that equivalent power in reading, writing 
and figuring should be developed in all parts of the city, but even this 
might be reached through different roads, and as far as other subjects 
are concerned, especially those which are not based on logical develop- 
ment, a great amount of variation might be allowed. This could be 
provided for if there were an adequate supervising staff practically 
living in the schools and standardizing the equality of the work rather 
than its actual content. Tests could be given from time to time, not 
of the nature of formal examinations, for the purpose of measuring 
the teacher's work rather than that of the pupils. In fact such tests 
are given at present either by the Superintendent or by the principals 
at his request. The children know nothing of the origin of the tests 
which are quite as much a gauge of the teachers' as of the pupils' 
work. In my judgment, this is the only kind of examination paper 
which should be set or outlined by the Superintendent. If teachers and 
principals were made absolutely responsible for the value of the human 
product sent on to the High Schools, it would tend to increase their 
feeling of responsibility and would give an added dignity to the im- 
portant position of the principal of an elementary school. 

It appears that in the High Schools the terminal examinations are, 
for the most part, set by the Superintendent, although occasionally 
teachers may be called on to assist. The principals and teachers of the 
High Schools should be of such ability and training that this duty 
could safely be entrusted to them, the Superintendent simply keeping 
thoroughly informed as to the nature of the examinations set and par- 
ticularly the nature of the class-room work upon which the examina- 
tions are based. The ability to make out a good examination paper 
is one mark of a teacher who has a good grasp of her subject. The 
true supervisory function here is that of helping teachers who lack 
this ability to find themselves. It can hardly be doubted that such an 
increase in the autonomy of the High Schools would operate to im- 
prove their efficiency through increasing initiative and responsibility 
on the part of teachers and principals, and it is equally clear that the 
time of the Superintendent would be set free from a routine task for 
the performance of higher educational functions. 

2. Percentage of Promotions. 

Below is a table setting forth the percentage of children regularly 
promoted, promoted on trial, promoted during the term, demoted, and 
failed, for the year ending June, 1916. The percentage of children 
demoted during the term is included in the percentage of children 
failed and, therefore, should not be added to make 100^. 



1 70 



School 


Per Cent Regu- 
larly Promoted 


Per Cent 
on Trial 


Per Cent Promoted 
Through the Term 


Per Cent 
Demoted 


Per Cent 
Failed 


1. 


91.6 


1.3 


1.6 


0.18 


5.5 


2. 


83.7 


0.0 


8.0 


0.69 


8.3 


3. 


88.1 


2.0 


2 2 


(1.25 


7.7 


4. 


83.6 


2.4 


8.6 


(Ui 


5.4 


5. 


74.9 


0.2 


13.7 


1.08 


11.2 


6. 


84.8 


1.1 


4.9 


(1.22 


9.2 


7.* 


81.9 


4.0 


S.4 


0.0 


5.7 


8. 


84.6 


(i.2 


8.0 


0.0 


7.2 


9.* 


84.8 


1.0 


6.1 


0.55 


8.1 


10. 


86.3 


1.2 


5.9 


0.0 


6.6 


11. 


87.3 


ii. n 


3.5 


0.1 


9.2 


12. 


86.8 


0.3 


5.4 


0.16 


7.5 


13. 


88.9 


0.0 


4.5 


0.53 


6.6 


14. 


84.0 


4.4 


4.4 


0.0 


7.2 


15. 


87.0 


0.0 


4.3 


0.56 


8.7 


16. 


91.7 


0.0 


2.2 


0.0 


6.1 


17. 


93.0 


0.3 


2.7 


0.49 


4.0 


18. 


81.2 


1.3 


9.5 


0.74 


8.0 


19. 


91.2 


1.4 


2.5 


0.29 


4.9 



These figures are for January, 1916. 



From these figures, compiled from the records of the Department, it 
will be seen that the percentage of promotion in all schools — including 
those promoted on trial and those promoted throughout the term — is 
uniformly high, varying between 89% and 96%. 

In order to get an idea of the amount and causes of non-promotion 
for the different grades in the various elementary schools the. Superin- 
tendent was asked to request teachers and principals to fill out two 
blank forms of inquiry, giving the folloAving information : 



177 



FORM I. 

Terminal Promotion, Promotion Through the Term 
and Non-Promotion. 

Name of School - Date 



Columnar Headings : 
Grade. 

Number enrolled during semester. 

Number who left for other schools or school systems. 

Number who left to go to work. 

Number of Promotions during semester. 

Number of Demotions during semester. 

Enrollment at end of Semester. 

Number Promoted. 

Number not Promoted. 

Number not Promoted on account of: 

Poor health. 

Poor preparation. 

Lack of interest on part of parents. 

Lack of interest on part of child. 

Irregular attendance, other than from ill health. 

Late entrance in semester. 

Coming from other schools. 

Too large class. 

Feebleminded. 

Mental slowness. 



178 



FORM II. 

Parentage and Racial Origin. 
Name of School Date. 



Columnar Headings : 
Grade. 

Promoted through the Term : 
Number of foreign birth. 

Number of American birth but foreign parentage. 
Number of American birth and parentage. 

Promoted : 

Number of foreign birth. 

Number of American birth but foreign parentage. 

Number of American birth and parentage. 

Not Promoted : 

Number of foreign birth. 

Number of American birth but foreign parentage. 

Number of American birth and parentage. 



The result of Form I appears in Tables XXV-A and XXV-B which 
follow. 

It will be noted that the percentage of non-promotion varies through- 
out the grades from 3.9% to 12.5%, while the amount of non-promo- 
tion among the schools varies from 4.9% to 13.7%. With the excep- 
tion of two half grades, the percentage of non-promotion throughout 
the grades does not exceed 8.7%, and among the individual elementary 
schools the rate does not exceed 8.8% except in six instances. In a 
city with so heterogeneous a population this rate speaks well for the 
quality of the supervision and the care with which teachers are selected 
and assigned. 



179 



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181 



As in the case of any such inquiry, absolute accuracy cannot be at- 
tributed to the judgments of causes of non-promotion. The very sug- 
gesting of possible causes in the use of headings tends to give an un- 
due weight to such factors in proportion to others not distinctly men- 
tioned. Again, such possible causes as poor instruction, lack of suffi- 
cient individual attention, unsuitable course of study, are rarely as- 
signed by teachers as actual causes even if definitely mentioned in an 
inquiry. At the same time the results are instructive and if such a 
census is taken every term the result cannot fail to be good. As a 
matter of fact, similar information has been obtained every year in 
Akron with regard to over-ageness in children, one of the chief causes 
of which is, of course, failure of regular promotion. 

The results of Form II were somewhat negative. In the system as a 
whole the fact of foreign birth seemed to have little relation to suc- 
cess in promotion. In the first primary grades the foreign children 
seemed to be under considerable handicap but as the middle grades 
were reached evidence of this disappeared, while in two of the last three 
grades the rate of promotion among pupils of foreign parentage was 
actually higher than among children of American parentage. This is 
probably due to a natural selective process. 

The number of promotions during the term is a noteworthy feature 
of the Akron schools. The use of the words "double promotion" and 
"skipping" has given a very wrong impression to many people who 
as a result have condemned the practice as injurious. It is natural 
that where education is looked upon as a series of jumps ahead it 
would not be regarded as wise to have a child jump twice as far as 
was expected in any one period, either because it would involve "skip- 
ping" some work or undue nervous pressure on the child. As a mat- 
ter of fact, there is no reason why each child should not follow his 
natural gait in school work, with due regard to age, health and natural 
interest, as in his out of school activities. There is no reason, other 
than a mechanical one, why all children should reach a certain point in 
the course of study at a certain time any more than that all adults in 
Akron should consume the same time in walking a mile. Only in an 
adult army is the rate and mode of progress of one necessarily con- 
formed to the whole. In fact, it is distinctly injurious to try to get 
equal attainment in an equal period. Either the slow are over-stimu- 
lated or the rapid discouraged and taught habits of indolence and in- 
difference, or both, i That promotions in Akron are too fluid is not a 
valid criticism, but rather that they are not as fluid as they might be 
with fewer children per teacher and more supervision. Insofar as 
children are "jumped" from one grade to another without covering 
essential material in the course, and insofar as the physique and health 
of children is hot considered in permitting or encouraging promotions 
during the term, the results may be bad. Particular inquiry was made 
on this point. In one school the following methods are used to insure 
that no hiatus shall occur in the courses of either slow or rapid-prog- 
ress children : 

182 



a — The principal for several periods each day teaches small special 
classes of selected pupils who need individual attention, either 
because they are slow or unusually quick. 

b — Where two adjacent divisions are under the same teacher, weak 
pupils in the higher division may be required to do the work of 
the lower division in certain subjects, in addition to their regular 
work, and rapid pupils in the lower division may be allowed to 
take the class-work of both divisions in certain basal subjects. 

c — "Where adjacent divisions are under different teachers, pupils are 
allowed to pass between classes for double work in different sub- 
jects. 

Where this system is faithfully applied nothing but good can result 
if full use is made of the medical inspection staff in matters of health. 
In fact the method should be given the widest use to secure, as far as 
is possible and desirable, promotion by subject. The observer in the 
course of visits, without any special inquiry, encountered evidences 
that the first of the devices mentioned above was in full operation. 
Later he discovered that it was a regular part of the work of each 
elementary principal. The question is not here raised whether the 
principals in the large schools should be assigned to this work or not. 

One Akron High School thus describes its method of securing a 
natural rate of promotion : 

"We make a special effort to keep in close touch with the homes 
by means of phone, personal calls, letters and interviews with 
parents who visit the school. We study our individual pupils to 
find out how best to adapt our instruction Jto their needs." 

"We permit our pupils to advance as rapidly as they wish to do. 
Pupils who are capable can graduate here in Zy^ years, and some- 
times in 3 years. Other pupils physically and mentally unable to 
carry full work are permitted to take a longer time to complete 
the course." 



VII. RETARDATION AND OVER-AGE IN AKRON. 

No two educational terms are so commonly confused and misunder- 
stood as retardation and over-age. Their meanings, however, are 
simple. Retardation is simply progress through the grades at a rate 
slower than what is regarded as the normal rate. Over-age is simply 
being older than the normal age for the grade in which a pupil finds 
himself. Over-age may be caused either by slow-progress (retarda- 
tion) after entering school or by late entrance on the school course. 
Over-age and retardation overlap to some extent. The school is not 
responsible for the over-age of children unless it is caused by retarda- 
tion, and not then if the causes of retardation are outside of school 
control. From the standpoint of the school, retardation is the impor- 

183 



tant problem. Its amount, incidence, and causes must be carefully 
studied in order to know how to combat it. For many years the City 
of Akron has made a continuous study of over-age and its causes. A 
complete study of retardation was impossible owing to the changing 
membership of the schools. It was thought worth while, however, for 
the purpose of this study to make an analysis of the retardation and 
over-age facts for those pupils whose records are complete, i. e., for 
the most part, those pupils whose whole school life has been in Akron. 

The standards of normal age and progress used in the study were 
as follows : 

Normal Age of Normal Length of School 
Entering the Life, in years, before 

Grade Grade Entering the Grade 

IB 6 

I-A 6* 4 

II-B .. - - 7 1 

II-A 74 1| 

III-B - 8 2 

III- A - .- 84 24 

IV-B 9 3 

IV-A - 94 34 

V-B - 10 4 

V-A :.-. 104 44 

VI-B . 11 5 

VIA - 114 54 

VII-B - 12 6 

VII-A 124 64 

VIII-B 13 7 

VIII-A '. 134 74 

The children of each elementary school and of each grade in the 
elementary schools as' a whole were divided by the study into nine 
groups, as follows : 

1. Young for their grades and rapid in progress; 

2. Of normal age and rapid in progress; 

3. Old for their grades, but rapid in progress; 

4. Normal in progress and young for their grades-; 
."). Normal both in age and progress; 

6. Normal in progress but over-age; 

7. Slow in progress luil young for their grades; 

8. Slow in progress bu1 of normal age; 

!•. Slow in progress and old for their grades. 

Table XXV] which Follows shows the main results of the study. 

184 



TABLE XXVI. 

SUMMARY OF AMOUNT OF OVER-AGE AND RETARDATION IN THE 
ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS 

Under-age Pupils ol Over-age Grand 

Pupils Normal Age Pupils Total Per Cent. 

Pupils making rapid progress 1,065 174 247 1,486 16.3% 

Pupils making normal progress 1,689 1,853 L,065 4,607 50.5 

Pupils making slow progress 199 716 2.114 3,029 33.2 

Total 1 ...2,953 2,743 3,426 9,122 100 % 

Per Cent 32.4% 30% 37.6% 100% 



Details of Amount of Over-age and Retardation in the Elementary Schools 
GRADE IB 









U 


nder-age 
Pupils 


Pupils of 
Normal Age 


Over-age 
Pupils 


Total 


Per Cent. 


Pupils making 
Pupils making 
Pupils making 


rapid progress 
normal progress 
slow progress 




192 
9 


362 
79 


127 
177 


681 
265 


72% 
28 


Total 








201 

- 21.2% 


441 

46.7% 


304 

32.1% 


946 

100% 


100% 


Per Cent 








GRADE I-A 








U 


nder-age 
Pupils 


Pupils of 
Normal Age 


Over-age 
Pupils 


Total 


Per Cent. 



Pupils making rapid progress 1 3 19 23 1.7% 

Pupils making normal progress 390 406 238 1,034 21.2 

Pupils making slow progress 30 75 180 285 77.1 

Total 421 484 437 1,342 100 % 

Per Cent 31.2% 36.1% 32.7% 100%^ 



GRADE II-B 

Under-age Pupils of Over-age 

Pupils Normal Age Pupils Total Per Cent. 

Pupils making rapid progress 15 6 6 27 3.4% 

Pupils making normal progress 228 172 109 509 61.8 

Pupils making slow progress 17 80 188 285 34.8 

Total 260 258 303 821 100 % 

iVr Cent 31.7% 31.5% 36.8% 100% 



GRADE II-A 




Under-age 
Pupils 


Pupils of 
Normal Ape 


Over-age 

Pupils 


Total 


Per Cent. 


Pupils making rapid progress 


59 


7 

190 

56 


17 
117 
163 


83 
488 
237 


10.37c 

60.4 

29.3 


Pupils making normal progress 


181 
18 








Total 


258 


253 
31.3% 


297 
36.8% 


808 
100%, 


100 % 


Per Cent 


31.9% 









185 



TABLE XXVI—Continued. 
Details of Amount of Over-age and Retardation in the Elementary Schools 
GRADE III-B , 





Under-age 
Pupils 


Pupils of 

Normal Age 


Over-age 

Pupils 


Total 


Per Cent. 


Pupils making rapid progress 

Pupils making normal progress 

Pupils making slow progress 


105 

117 

9 


16 
141 

84 


19 

49 

166 


140 
307 
259 


19.8% 

43.5 

36.7 


Total 


231 


241 
34.2% 


234 
33.1% 


706 
100% 


100 % 


Per Cent 


- 32.7% 




GRADE III-A 




Under-age 
Pupils 


Pupils of 
Normal Age 


Over-age 
Pupils 


Total 


Per Cent. 


I'upils making rapid progress 


61 


7 

128 

63 


10 

70 

204 


78 
290 
293 


11.8% 


Pupils making normal progress 


92 


45.4 


I'upils making slow progress 


26 


42.8 


Total 

Per Cent 


179 

27% 


198 

20.9% 


284 
43.1% 


661 

100% 


100 % 


GRADE IV-B 




Under-age 
Pupils 


Pupils of 
Normal Age 


Over-age 
Pupils 


Total 


Per Cent. 


Pupils making rapid progress 

Pupils making normal progress 

Pupils making slow progress 


118 

83 

18 


11 

80 
64 


23 

54 
232 


152 
217 
314 


22.3% 

31.8 

45.9 


Total 

Per Cent 


219 
32.1% 


155 

22.7% 


309 

45.2% 


683 
100% 


100 % 


GRADE IV-A 




Under-age 
Pupils 


Pupils of 
Normal Age 


Over-age 

Pupils 


Total 


Per Cent. 


Pupils making rapid progress 


71 


16 
94 
51 


29 

80 
166 


116 
262 
234 


18.8% 
43.0 


Pupils making normal progress 


88 


Pupils making slow progress 


17 


38.2 


Total 

Per Cent 


176 

28.7% 


161 
26.4% 


275 
44.9% 


612 
100% 


100 % 


GRADE V-B 




Under-age 
Pupils 


Pupils of 
Normal Age 


Over-age 

Pupils 


Total 


Per Cent. 


I'upils making rapid progress 


72 
50 


13 

54 
42 


15 

28 
126 


100 
132 
180 


24.3% 
32 




12 


43.7 








Total 

Per < lent 


134 


109 
25. C' , 


169 

11', 


412 
100% 


100 % 



186 



TABLE XXVI— Continued. 
Details of Amount of Over-age and Retardation in the Elementary Schools 
GRADE V-A 







Under-age 
Pupils 


Pupils of 
Normal Age 


Over-age 
Pupils 


Total 


Per Cent. 


Pupils making rapic 
Pupils making norm 
Pupils making slow 


1 progress 

al progress 
progress 


87 

80 

13 


14 
56 
29 


25 

50 
141 


126 
186 
183 


25.5% 

37.6 

36.9 


Total 

Per Cent 




180 
36.3% 


99 

20% 


216 
43.7% 


495 
100% 


100 % 


GRADE VI-B 


















Under-age 
Pupils 


Pupils of 
Normal Age 


Over-age 
Pupils 


Total 


Per Cent. 


Pupils making rapid progress 


112 
45 


14 
45 
41 


20 
29 
99 


146 
119 
145 


35.6% 
29.0 


Pupils making slow 




5 


35.4 








Total 

Per Cent 




162 
39.5% 


100 

24.4% 


148 
36.1% 


410 
100% 


100 % 


GRADE VIA 






i Inder-age 
Pupils 


Pupils of 
Normal Age 


Over-age 
Pupils 


Total 


Per Cent. 


Pupils making rapi< 
Pupils making norm 
Pupils making slow 




86 


9 

37 
18 


22 
28 
91 


117 

109 
117 


34.1% 




44 


31.8 




8 


34.1 








Total 

Per Cent 




138 

40.2% 


64 

18.6% 


141 

41.2% 


343 
100% 


100 % 


GRADE VII-B 


















Under-age 

Pupils 


Pupils of 
Normal Age 


Over-age 
Pupils 


Total 


Per Cent. 


Pupils making rapid progress 


73 

24 


17 
34 
24 


' 17 
29 
75 


107 

87 
105 


35.6% 
29.1 


Pupils making slow 


progress 


6 


35.3 


Total 

Per Cent 




103 
34.2% 


75 
25.2% 


121 
40.6% 


299 
100% 


100 % 



GRADE VII-A 

Under-age Pupils of Over-age 

Pupils Normal Age Pupils Total Per Cent. 

Pupils making rapid progress 65 12 5 82 38.5% 

Pupils making normal progress.... 35 22 28 85 39.9 

Pupils making slow progress 6 3 37 46 21.6 

Tota l 106 37 70 213 100 % 

Per Cent 49.7% 17.4% 32.9% 100% 

187 



TABLE XXVI— Continued 
Details of Amount of Over-age and Retardation in the Elementary Schools 
GRADE VIII-B 

Under-age Pupils of Over-age 

Pupils Normal Age Pupils Total Per Cent. 

Pupils making rapid progress 65 18 10 93 65.9% 

Pupils making normal progress 3 8 10 21 14.9 

Pupils making slow progress 2 3 22 27 19.2 

Total 70 29 42 141 100 % 

Per Cent 49.6% 20.5% 29.9% 100% 



GRADE VIII-A 



Under-age Pupils of Over-age 

Pupils Normal Age Pupils Total Per Cent. 



Pupils making rapid progress 76 11 10 97 41.8% 

Pupils making normal progress 37 24 19 80 34.5 

Pupils making slow progress 4 4 47 55 . 23.7 

Total 117 39 76 232 100 % 

Per Cent 50.4% 16.9% 32.7% 100% 

The following points, among others, were established by the study 
of over-age and retardation : 

a — For 44% of the children in the Akron schools there are not com- 
plete records. These represent for the most part children who 
started school elsewhere; 

b — 33.2% of the children — for whom there were complete records, 
and who presumably for the most part started school in Akron 
— have made slow progress; 50.5% normal progress; and 16.3% 
rapid progress ; 

c — 23% of the children are both slow in progress and too old for 
their grades ; 

d — 106 classes in Akron contain pupils, the variations in whose prog- 
ress covers as much as 6 terms, or 3 school years; 

e — 287 classes also contain pupils whose ages vary as much as 3 
years. 

These conditions are not unusual in American cities. In fact, in com- 
parison with most cities Akron stands well. It would be possible here 
to set forth comparative lists, but the standards used are so varied and 
the local conditions are so different that the information would shed 
little light on Akron's problems. In Akron itself the local conditions 
are in such a state of flux that an increase in the percentage of retarda- 
tion would not necessarily indicate a decrease in efficiency, but only 
perhaps an increase in difficulties. For example, the tremendous in- 
crease in enrollment from outside points and particularly the increase 
in the foreign elements of the population, according to the records of 

188 



the schools, has apparently cut down the relative number of promotions 
through the year for the last decade. It is interesting to note that 
during the same period the percentage of regular promotions has not 
decreased. This is due to the definite adoption of a policy which con- 
centrated effort on securing at least a normal rate of promotion. With 
smaller classes and more intimate supervision the proportion of rapid 
promotion might have been kept up with equal success. 

There are at least four effective methods of dealing with retarda- 
tion: 

1. Small classes. 

2. Fine classification of children according to ability to progress 
rapidly. 

3. Frequent regular promotion periods. 

4. Promotion by subjects where possible. 

In Akron the classes are not abnormally large when compared with 
other growing cities, and the chief benefit of small classes is obtained 
by dividing every teacher's class into at least two divisions so that the 
teaching unit is rarely more than 20, except in the case of subjects 
which lend themselves to treatment in large groups. A glance over 
the excerpts from field notes in Part C. will make this apparent. 
Tables XXVII and XXVIII which follow show the facts with regard 
to the distribution of classes of various sizes. It will be noticed that 
the number of classes with a membership of 45 or over seems again to 
be on the increase. This constitutes a danger signal. It should be 
borne in mind, however, that each of these classes has at least two 
divisions. 



189 



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190 



TABLE XXVIII 

DISTRIBUTION OF CLASSES ACCORDING TO NUMBER OF PUPILS PER 
TEACHER— April 20th, 1917. 

Number of Classes with Enrollment for the Month of April 

25 30 35 40 45 50 55 or 

Name of School Under 25 to 29 to 34 to 39 to 44 to 4 9 to 54 Over 

Allen 00184210 

Bowen 00544101 

Bryan 8 5 6 1 

Crosby 00270310 

Frank H. Mason 1 I 10 4 2 

Fraunfelter 00234221 

Grace 4 13 4 

Henry 4 4 2 2 1 

Howe 13 9 6 

Jennings 00014231 

Kent 2 9 14 

Lane 1 1 5 13 6 4 

Leggett 00234645 

Lincoln 00137420 

Miller 3 12 13 4 2 

Perkins Normal 1 2 3 4 4 1 

Portage Path 14 9 2 5 1 

Robinson 2 7 11 7 4 1 

S. Findley 001 12 3101 

Spicer 00372420 

Caldwell 112 5 

Central High 4 4 3 3 3 1 

South High 1 6 13 4 

West High 8 10 10 

Brittain 10 2 10 

Goodyear 2 110 

Forest Hill 13 1 

4 55 127 124 98 41 26 



Practically all of the extremely large classes are in the kinder- 
garten. In such cases two teachers are provided for each class, each 
division meeting, if necessary, at different sessions. The percentage 
of classes with a membership of more than 40 apparently has not m 
creased in three years even including the oversize kindergarten classes. 

The classification of pupils in Akron is also up to the average. 
Comparatively few over-size children were observed in most of the 
schools visited. It is felt, however, that more might be done in secur- 
ing a nearer approach to homogeneity in the divisions by considering 
carefully the assignment of each individual child from the standpoint 
of past progress and age. No matter how homogeneous a class may be 
at the beginning of a term, individual differences begin to develop im- 
mediately so that there need be no fear that the effects of competi- 
tion will be eliminated by fine classification. As a matter of fact there 
can be no rivalry, but only discouragement, when children of two 
greatly different abilities are included in the same division of a class. 
In one or two classes observed, the classification was such as to dis- 
tribute the children evenly between the divisions so that they were 
about alike in the average ability of their membership. The analogy 
of the race track is of value here. The divisions should be regarded 
as fluid, as far as possible, each child beginning each term where he 

191 



left off the term before so that the full advantage of classification may- 
be obtained. In so far as divisions remain permanent in constitution, 
the same principle should obtain. Many examples of this policy were 
observed in actual practice in Akron, the membership of some classes 
being in flux to such an extent that almost the total memberships were 
changed within one school year. 

There are two regular promotion periods during the Akron school 
year, corresponding to the half-year grades set up in the Course of 
Study. This ensures that a non-promoted child will not have to do a 
whole year's work over again. It is advisable, of course, that no child 
should have to repeat any work he knows well. With our mass educa- 
tion, however, this is not always possible, although in Akron if the 
methods referred to on page 189 be used to the full extent or increased 
where necessary, there is no reason why non-promoted children could 
not be allowed, in very many cases, to continue the work they were 
fitted to do in more advanced divisions or classes. For the sake of the 
child's ambition and self-respect and for the sake of society this ideal 
should be held firmly in view as no doubt it is, in many cases in Akron. 
Except in the first grades and in the basal subjects, failure in any one 
subject certainly should not involve the repetition of the full work of 
a school semester. 

The following record of 79 pupils starting in I-B illustrates both 
the extent of the present fluidity of promotion and the migratory na- 
ture of the population of Akron : 

ENROLLMENT AND LEAVING 

September January September January 
1915 1916" 1916 1917 

Grade IB 79 9 

Grade I-A 51 7 

Grade II-B 1 32 6 

Grade II-A .... 19 22 

Grade III-B .... 1 9 

Grade III-A .... .... 8 

Grade IV-B 

Grade IV-A .... .... 1 

Left the Building 18 2 13 

That is, out of 79 pupils starting out in I-B., at the end of a year and 
a half, 1 was in IV-A ; 8 in III-A ; 9 in III-B ; 22 in II-A ; and 6 in II-B ; 
and 33 had left the building. 

The range of ages in the membership of a class is very important. 
The range in rate of progress is still more important. Both must be 
considered in classifying children within the same grades at the end 
of each semester. To secure the best results in co-operation and healthy 
rivalry the children of a class should be as near one another as pos- 
sible in age and capacity to make progress. Although Akron does not 
stand poorly in these regards, a great deal could be done to improve 
conditions. Table XXIX which follows classifies the classes of each 
grade according to the range of rates of progress in their membership 
by half years. The classification, however, is confined to those chil- 
dren only who began school in Akron. It does not include foreigners 
or others who began their school life elsewhere and for whose present 
status the schools of Akron are responsible. 

192 



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193 



In Grade I-B, for example, there were 8 classes whose memberships 
were on a par, as to progress, in 13 classes there was only half a year 
between the fastest and the slowest pupils, and in only one class was 
there a difference of as much as 2 years between the slowest and the 
most rapid. It will be noticed that the range of ages increases up to 
VI-A and decreases again up to VIII-A. This is because the law holds 
boys in school until the age of 15 and girls to the age of 16. Back- 
ward children naturally drop out in most cases when they fill the re- 
quirements of the law. (See page 196 on dropping out.) Out of 492 
classes for which statistics were obtained, 106 classes had children who 
started school in Akron who varied in rates of progress 3 years or 
more. 

In Table XXX which follows is shown a similar grouping of classes 
according to range of ages between their oldest and youngest pupils. 
It will be noticed that out of 492 classes reported on 287 had ranges 
in age between the oldest and youngest pupil of 3 years or over, while 
23 had ranges of 6 years or over. The range in ages is of course 
much greater than range in years. Children arrive at a proper age for 
going to school at different periods in their lives. For this the school 
is not responsible. Nevertheless great ranges in age constitute a great 
handicap to teachers under our present mode of organization. In the 
larger schools no doubt much could be done by classifying pupils in 
the same grades so as to put similar age-progress groups under the 
same teachers. 



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195 



It is recommended that age-grade tables similar to those given on 
pages 185-188 be made out for each class in Akron at the beginning 
and end of each semester as a guide to re-classification cf pupils in the 
light of differences cf age and progress. The name of each pupil must 
of course be entered on whatever age-grade form may be used. 

VIII. ELIMINATION OF CHILDREN OR THEIR DROPPING 
OUT BEFORE COMPLETING THE ELE- 
MENTARY SCHOOL COURSE. 

During the first half of the present academic year, 103 children 
dropped out of school to go to work before completing the work of 
the elementary schools. These must all have been children over 15 or 
over 16, according as they were boys or girls. It is fair to assume 
that the elimination during the second half of the school year is, on 
the average, equal to that of the first half. The usual experience is 
that the number dropping ont during the summer vacation is greater 
than either. Is it not probable, therefore, that between 300 and 400 
children annually drop out of school before completing the course? 
From a comparative standpoint, this is a good record, but absolutely 
and individually it constitutes a serious loss. The question is not 
"How does Akron compare with other cities as to elimination?" but 
"How does Akron's record compare with her possible record?" 

The following questions naturally arise here: 

1 — Did these children who dropped out all have the advantages of 
pre-vocational instruction, and manual training or domestic arts? 

2 — What proportion of them were forced out of school for financial 
reasons and what proportion could have been retained if the 
children and their parents had felt that remaining in school would 
have added to the children's efficiency? 

3 — How many of these are the schools now reaching, how, and with 
Avhat results? 

The error is sometimes made of regarding the membership of the 
different grades as a measure of dropping out. It is claimed, for in- 
stance, that if 2,000 children are found in Grade I and 500 in Grade 
VIII, that there has been an elimination of 75%. This is, of course, not 
true. Children die and thus decrease the numbers in the upper grades. 
Population increases and thus increases the size of the incoming 
classes.* The latter factor is not of so much weight as might be 
thought as all grades receive accessions from outside. The table below 
shows approximately the total membership for each grade and the 
approximate number of those starting in Akron schools. (Pupils whose 
school records were complete.) 

*Sinee 1905, Akron's population has gone up from .VJ,:i. r >7 to 135,000 (estimated). 



Total No. who started 

Grads Membership in Akron 

IB 1,457 946 

I A 1,477 1,342 

IT-B 1,115 819 

II-A 1,255 808 

1II-B 1,124 706 

III-A 1,309 661 

IV-B 1,132 683 

IV-A 1,246 612 

V-B 833 412 

V-A 1,067 495 

VI-B 790 410 

VIA 954 343 

VII-B 704 299 

VII-A 754 213 

VIII-B 492 141 

VIII-A 623 232 

TOTAL 16,332 9,122 



A study of these two columns will give a good idea of the amount of 
elimination if the following facts are kept sight of: 

1— The death rate has decreased the membership in the upper classes; 

2 — Many children have come from other places to Akron; 

3 — Many Akron children have gone to other places; 

4 — The difference in enrollment between Grade I and Grade II is 
largely caused by the non-promotion of immature children. 

It will be noted that there is a rapid drop in membership above IV-A, 
which cannot be accounted for without the element of elimination. 

In this connection it is noteworthy that 865 children entered the 
system in 1905, that an unknown number have, since entered the various 
grades at different places — probably many more than those who left 
for other schools — in the course, and that 300 graduated from the High 
Schools in 1917. Again, 1974 children — or twice as many as in 1905 — 
entered school for the first time during 1916-1917, and 930 graduated 
from the elementary schools and 300 from the High Schools at the two 
promotion periods in 1917. Not all the disparity in these figures is 
due to increase in population or to death. Much is due to the mal- 
adjustment of the school system to community needs and to undesirable 
social and economic conditions. 

Akron's record compares favorably with that of other communities 
in respect to elimination, but net with her own possibilities. Very 
careful check on eliminations is maintained by the Superintendent at 
present. Causes of elimination and other necessary data are recorded 
in every case. So far these records have not been used for statistical 
purposes as the city has no continuation schools and it was felt that 
the time necessary for annual statistical studies of retardation would 
not be warranted. 

It is suggested that, in future, eliminations be made the subject of the 
same kind of thorough study that the Akron system has given to over- 
age and its causes as a basis for the establishment of continuation 
schools and thoroughly organized night schools in Akron. 

197 



IX. THE EXCEPTIONAL CHILD. 

In preceding chapters the methods of handling promotions during 
the term so as to insure that the children will not be handicapped by 
"holes" in their schooling has been fully described. The same means 
are used to assist the slow child and, in addition, a few minutes of the 
teacher's time each day is reserved for individual instruction. While 
this is available to both the very bright and the slow children, it is 
to be assumed that the slow child gets the greater care. A great in- 
justice to the slow children has been done in many quarters by group- 
ing them with the sub-normal. They are not sub-normal. In many 
cases they simply require different stimuli in order to arouse their 
latent abilities. In one of the upper grades a big boy was observed 
who seemed to be paying no attention to the teaching. As he looked 
intelligent the teacher was asked concerning his case. It appeared 
that he had been at a military school and while there had made good 
progress. He was greatly interested in wireless telegraphy and had 
even lectured on this topic. But there seemed to be nothing in the 
ordinary course of study which interested him. The school afforded 
him no opportunity for shop-work in wood or metals. In every system 
there are numbers of such boys. They are worth saving — often the 
most worth saving. 

In another school a boy was reciting in formal grammar. He would 
soon be of working age and was about to leave school, yet he had 
nothing of the nature of pre-vocational training. 

Besides these slow normal children, there are the actually sub- 
normal children who, at best, will be able to be self-supporting only 
under direction. Many such cases exist in all communities. In Akron 
the w r orst cases are not sent to school at all. The others attend but, in 
fairness to the other children, they receive no extra time from the 
teacher. It is possible that they do not do much harm in the regular 
classes. They certainly do no good and receive none. Should not all 
these children receive the instruction which they need under specially 
prepared teachers and in separate schools with the necessary special 
equipment? The principals of Akron are especially well-equipped for 
diagnosing feeble-mindedness, while the Board of Health provides for 
the schools a specialist in this work. 

Eighteen buildings make special physical arrangements to supply 
rooms for individual instruction of "bright" and "slow" children. 
Thirteen have rooms set apart specifically for this purpose. Very ef- 
fective work is carried on in these rooms. The following is a char- 
acteristic note on one: "Especially slow children, especially bright 
children, and children needing special help on account of absence 
through sickness, are here helped by the principal. Special indi- 
vidual teaching on the average, one hour per day." 

198 



X. MEDICAL INSPECTION AND OPEN-WINDOW ROOMS 

IN THE SCHOOLS. 

Everywhere the examiner went he saw evidences of regular faithful 
work on the part of the Medical Inspection Force and of the most com- 
plete co-operation by the principals and teaching force. Several prin- 
cipals — as they well might — showed their pride in the medical equip- 
ment of their schools. All observed were fully up-to-date and in line 
with the latest developments. Twenty-four report stocks of medicines. 
At the Bowen School the writer had a good opportunity to observe 
the plant and equipment and the noiseless method with which pupils 
left their rooms for consultation with the nurses. He also spent some 
time with the open-air classes and ate lunch with the children. In 
equipment and management the open-air school leaves nothing to be 
desired as far as could be seen. Accompanying are some photographs 
of the pupils taken by request. It was a genuine pleasure to observe 
the children at lunch, at play and getting ready for work. Of the 83 
children enrolled during the school year, 27 boys and 28 girls gained 
in weight. The gains were from 2 to 6 pounds per child. Only 2, 
boys, lost weight. 

It is an interesting fact that several parents of children who auto- 
matically left the open-air school on reaching the sixth grade were 
disappointed, as they said that 1916-1917 was the first year in which 
the health of their children had permitted regular attendance. 

That the work might well be extended is indicated by the fact that 
of the 30 new children who are to enter the school for the fall term, 
one is from the Fraunfelter, one from the Allen, and the remainder 
from the Bowen School where the open-air rooms are located. 



Medical Inspection Room at the Bowen School. 




199 



Open-air Children of the Bowen School. 
At Work. 




It is hoped thai the work may be extended to every large elementary 
school so that cases may be taken in hand all over the city at the very 
first sign that extra attention to health is needed. 

The School Medical Inspection Division of the Board of Health em- 
ploys 8 physicians, including one who spends all her time as special 
examiner of feeble-minded and retarded children. There are also 8 
school nurses assigned regularly to schools, giving full time service 
during the school year. In addition, 6 nurses of other divisions do 
work hearing directly on the welfare of school children. Considering 
that the work in Akron is comparatively in its infancy, this compares 



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very favorably with such a city as Toronto, which employs about 40 
nurses for an enrollment of from 65,000 to 70,000 children. 

Akron has reason to be proud that she has taken the lead of so many 
large cities in co-ordinating the work of the Health Department and 
that of the School Medical Inspection service. There was every evi- 
dence of co-operation and none of friction. 

The following statistics from the reports of the Medical Inspection 
Service give some idea of the extent and nature of the work under- 
taken. Table XXXI summarizes the work of the physicians for four 
months and Table XXXII of the 8 school nurses from October, 1916, 

to June, 1917. 

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The ratio of the normal children observed to those showing defects 
is illuminating — in January, 568 to 3335 ; in February, 950 to 2655 ; in 
March, 1050 to 2644 ; and in April, 505 to 1316. The tremendous num- 
ber of cases of adenoids should inspire inquiry into the effects of air 
vitiated by soot and dust. 

From an educational standpoint the work with retarded children 
is particularly valuable. Akron is especially favored in having a 
physician especially assigned to this duty, with an assistant nurse. 
The general acquaintance of the teachers and the particular acquaint- 
ance of the principals with the Binet-Simon tests, gives an almost 
unique opportunity for fruitful co-operation between the physician 
and the teaching and supervisory staff. In the statistics above, 
reference is made to the special retardation survey which has been 
carried on for some months and Table XXXIII. which follows sum- 
marizes the results of the public school work of the medical officer in 
charge for the months of January, February, March and April, 1917. 



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213 



An excellent co-operative feature reported from the Bowen School 
is a Municipal Welfare Station for Babies, held in the school dispen- 
sary twice per week, with doctor arid nurse in attendance. For one 
hour each school day a nurse is in attendance for consultation with 
mothers. Similar arrangements should be made in every large ele- 
mentary school center catering to a mixed population. 



XI. THE ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL TRAINING OF 

TEACHERS IN THE AKRON SCHOOLS, THEIR 

WORKING DAY, THEIR PAY AND 

LENGTH OF SERVICE. 

1. Training. 

A careful tabulation has been made of the information supplied by 
the Superintendent as to the professional and academic training of the 
teachers now in service. Akron has no reason to be ashamed of the 
facts as presented in Table XXXIV which follows. It may be said 
that the excellent impression gained by the observer as to the person- 
nel of the teaching force, its ability and devotion, was what might be 
expected taking into consideration tin- amount of time and money its 
members, on the whole, have invested in preparation for their life 
work. 



TABLE XXXIV. 

AMOUNT OF ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL TRAINING 
OF TEACHERS IN AKRON. 

(In addition, 117 teachers had college or university training.) 

Elementary High High Normal 

School .Elementary School School School 

Length of Training Teachers Principals Teachers, Principals Teachers 

4 Years in High School 429 22 109 3 3 

3 Years in High School 8 

2 Years in High School 1 

1 Year in High School 1 

No Years in High School 

4 Years Professional 1 1 13 

3 Years Professional 9 2 .... 1 

2 Fears Professional 247 1 

1 Fear Professional 103 

Less than One Year Professional .. 27 
No Years Professional 52 

214 



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The Akron Board of Education maintains a Normal School which 
has trained 14% of the present teaching force. There can be no fear 
of inbreeding while this percentage is maintained. The observer spent 
sufficient time in the class-rooms of the Normal School to convince him 
that work of real value was being done. The outstanding feature of 
the work was its intensiveness. This is rendered possible by the com- 
parative smallness of the enrollment and the opportunities for sub- 
stituting afforded the Senior Class. The same methods for develop- 
ing pupil initiative and resourcefulness were being used in the Normal 
School as in the grades and the High Schools. One excellent lesson 
along this line was observed in which the pupil teachers developed for 
themselves in conference an outline for a lesson in liquid measure. 

It is unlikely, in view of the immense amount of substituting done 
by senior pupils — who on the average should be the most satisfactory 
substitutes available — that the Normal School costs the tax-payers 
any appreciable amount annually. At the same time it would seem 
clear that the city should receive State assistance toward paying the 
salaries of the teachers. 

There are two tentative suggestions that might be made in connec- 
tion with the operation of the Normal School : 

1. That arrangements might be worked out for a close affiliation 
with a department of education in the University by which broader 
and more varied courses might be offered in the Normal School 
and the staff and laboratory advantages of the Normal School 
might be made available to build up a strong department at the 
University ; 

2. That co-operative arrangements might be made with the Kent 
Normal School for the mutual loaning of teachers and transfer- 
ence of pupils for stated periods. 

Table XXXV which follows sets forth the facts as to where the 
teachers of Akron received their training. 



215 



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2. The Working- Day of Principals and Teachers. 

The principals of schools other than "rural" schools were asked 
to prepare for the inquiry a statement as to the amount of time per 
week consumed in their various activities connected with school work. 
Replies were received from 24 principals. In many cases the time was 
not given for various miscellaneous activities, but the time accounted 
for averaged 39.5 hours per week — or 7.9 hours per school day — per 
principal. This time was divided as follows: 

Class-room supervision 16.7 hours. 

Instruction of exceptional children 6.9 hours. 

Reports to Superintendent 9 hours. 

Clerical work connected with the school itself 3.4 hours. 

Teachers' meetings 2.0 hours. 

Parents' meetings 3 hours. 

Miscellaneous administrative routine 6.6 hours. 

Other functions connected with school work 2.7 hours. 

Total 39.5 hours. 

As a matter of great interest, quotations from principals' reports 
as to miscellaneous activities are given below : 

1. "Aside from school work, many calls are made upon the school 

for charitable and benevolent advertising and appeals of var- 
ious kinds. The school occasionally prepares an entertainment 
of considerable merit which necessarily requires considerable 
time during some weeks." 

2. "Interviews with teachers individually and with pupils. Visits 

to homes." 

3. "Conferences with teachers, pupils delinquent in work or con- 

duct, looking over lesson plans, signing excuses of absentees, 
investigating causes of tardiness and absence, looking after 
transfers, calling at homes, interviewing parents, supervising 
playgrounds. ' ' 

4. "Visiting homes for the purpose of knowing the home environ- 

ment of the pupils and establishing a better understanding be- 
tween parents and teachers. ' ' 

5. "Binet-Simon testing." 

6. "Checking up supplies." 

These miscellaneous activities include work of the very greatest im- 
portance to the community. 

The working week of the teachers in these 24 schools averaged 
38.9 hours — or 7.8 hours per school day. The average teacher's week 
was divided as follows : 

Class-room teaching 23.6 hours. 

Instruction of individual children 4.0 hours. 

Making reports 1.0 hours. 

Other clerical w r ork 1.8 hours. 

Preparation of lessons 5.2 hours. 

Parents' meetings 3 hours. 

Other work connected with schools 3.0 hours. 

Total. 38.9 hours. 

217 



No indications were seen by the writer that any principal or teacher 
was not giving of their best in the community's service. Many out- 
standing instances were observed of unusual devotion to duty and to 
the profession. 

3. How Akron Teachers are Paid. 

The minimum salary paid regular elementary school teachers in 
Akron is $550 and the maximum $1000. The average salary is $813.81 
and the median salary is $800. More elementary teachers receive 
$950 per annum than any other sum. 

The following table gives the median salaries for 11 cities : • 

San Francisco $1200 

Boston 1176 

Chicago - 1175 

St. Louis 1032 

. Minneapolis 1000 

Cincinnati 1000 

Newark 1000 

Philadelphia 900 

Cleveland 900 

Milwaukee 876 

AKRON 800 

It should be remembered that Akron has to compete with some of 
these cities for teachers. Living is no cheaper in Akron than in most 
cities on the list and Akron teachers have no easier work. That 
Akron is a smaller city is beside the mark. The most progressive 
smaller communities have established rates of pay as high or higher 
than those of large cities. In the long run a city gets what it pays 
for. An increased cost of living and a stationary salary schedule in 
the end is bound to affect disastrously the efficiency of any school 
system. 

An indirect result of the salary schedule in Akron is the entire 
elimination of the male teacher from the regular grade work. This is 
undoubtedly a weakness. In after-school life, the masculine element 
and the masculine way of looking at things are of equal importance 
to the feminine element and point of view. 

In the home at present the father is often a silent partner and at 
best the waking time he spends at home is but a small fraction of his 
day. If men are also to be banished from the elementary schools the 
effect on the all-round development of individual and of national life 
cannot fail to be serious. This has always been the case where nature 
has been thrown out of balance. 

The highest salary paid to female special teachers in the grades is 
$1400, the lowest $600, and the average $1025. To male special 
teachers the highest salary paid is $1600, the lowest $1000, and the 
average $1300. 

The lowest salary paid to a woman elementary school principal is 
$1050, the highest $1500, the average $1440, and the mode $1500. 

The lowest salary paid to a male elementary school principal is 
$1500, the highest $2220, the average $1666.66, the median $1600, and 
the mode $1600. 

218 



The following table gives the median salaries for elementary school 
principals in 11 cities : 

Boston $3300 

Chicago : 2800 

Newark : 2600 

St. Louis - 2500 

Cincinnati 2200 

Milwaukee 1980 

San Francisco - 1800 

Philadelphia 1600 

Minneapolis . 1600 

Cleveland 1560 

AKRON : 

Women Principals (mode) 1500 

Male Principals 1600 

All Principals 1500 

For High School teachers the facts are as follows : 

Female. Male. 

Median Salary $1200.00 $1250.00 

Average 1164.18 1282.14 

Mode - 1350.00 1500.00 

Minimum 800.00 1000.00 

Maximum - 1500.00 1500.00 

Below is a list giving median salaries for 11 cities: 

Newark $1900 

San Francisco - - 1680 

Boston 1620 

Chicago - - - 1600 

St. Louis 1520 

Cleveland 1500 

Philadelphia - 1400 

Minneapolis 1400 

Cincinnati 1300 

Milwaukee - 1260 

AKRON : 

Female Teachers 1200 

Male Teachers - 1250 

Both 1250 

It will be noted that Akron stands relatively better with regard to 
the pay of its High School teachers than of its Elementary School 
teachers. The investment in time and money necessary to obtain 
training fitting a man or woman for High School training should, how- 
ever, be taken into account, as well as the financial rewards of other 
occupations for which an equal investment might have fitted them. 

There are no women High School principals. The lowest salary 
paid to a High School principal is $2500, the maximum $3000, and the 
average $2766.66. 

On the following page is given a distribution table (XXXVI) show- 
ing how many teachers in the various kinds of school receive the 
various rates of salary in the Akron schedule. 

219 



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220 



This table is much more illuminating than any statement of averages 
could be. Each teacher's case is an individual case. The average may 
not represent one single individual case. For example, if three 
teachers get $500 each and another one gets $2000, the average salary 
is $875. If $875 were a living wage, the average would seem to indi- 
cate that a living wage was being paid to these teachers, while, as a 
matter of fact, one teacher would be getting more than the living 
wage and the other three less. 

The question that presents itself at this point is : How many teachers 
in Akron are getting a living wage or more, and how many are getting 
less than a living wage under Akron conditions? It is suggested 
that a Joint Committee of the Board of Education, the Chamber of 
Commerce and the supervisory and teaching force of Akron, conduct 
a thorough investigation to determine : 

1st — A living wage for teachers, taking into consideration the de- 
mands made upon teachers ; 

2nd — The relative financial rewards for teaching ; for work in Akron 
establishments demanding training equal to that of teachers ; 
for work in Akron establishments requiring less training than 
that demanded of teachers ; 

3rd — A schedule of salaries for Akron teachers based on the facts 
discovered. 

In this connection the following figures from the Report of the Cleve- 
land Educational Survey are illuminating : 



Annual Wages of Artisans in Cleveland. 

Plumbers - $1219 

Bricklayers - - - 1192 

Plasterers 1132 

Painters - 1003 

Carpenters , 992 

Molders - 945 

Machinists - 875 

Out of 433 Elementary School teachers in Akron : 

168 receive considerably less than a machinist 

264 receive considerably less than a molder 

264 receive considerably less than a carpenter 

431 receive considerably less than a painter 

and not one received as much as a plasterer, a bricklayer or a plumber. 
Similar figures should be compiled for Akron, including all trades 
typical of Akron industries. 

221 



In Evanston, Illinois, the Acting Superintendent of Schools and a 
committee of teachers have just completed a study of living costs and 
of methods of teacher promotion based on merit as well as seniority. 
They have just reported to the Board of Education recommending a 
salary schedule consonant with conditions in Evanston. 

4. Length of Service of Teachers. 

The study of the length of service of teachers in Akron gave an ex- 
tremely clear notion of the growth of the system in recent years. This 
was an entirely unexpected by-product. The task of securing efficient 
teachers for the new classes opened annually must be tremendous and 
would be even more serious without the local Normal School. 

Of the 52 men and 524 women teachers on the list submitted, 33 men 
and 294 women have been appointed since 1911 and 42 men and 413 
women since 1905. Only 56 teachers now in service — 6 of them men — ■ 
came into the system prior to 1902. 

Table XXXVII which follows shows the dates of appointment of 
the teachers and principals in the various types of schools. 



222 



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COMPARATIVE SCORES OF SCHOOL BUILDINGS 



Appendix— Page II 
TABLE XVII A. 



Hi^li Schools 



Elementary Schools 



Countrj 









LOCATION 

15 

up of: 
Good Ni'i- 3 

oisi ' oik! it inn 3 

iin i or Smoke Conditions 3 

Vcci iliilit.v 3 

In-, i ronment : 

Actual Score 

Average 

GROUNDS 

Perfect Sioro 10 

Mm If ii|i ul 

Idequacj ■> 

Surface Condition 2 

Appearance 2 

Apparatus i 

Actual Score 

Average 

STR1 OTUBAL CONDITIONS 

Perfect Score 20 

Hade up of: 

r. Hazard 5 

State "I Repair 5 

Design 5 

Construction s 

Actual Score 

Average 

HEATING UH> VKNTILATION 

Perfect Score 25 

Made ip of: 

Adequacy of Plant 5 

Arrangement 5 

[ntake Conditions 5 

Smoke Conditions 5 

Operation ,... 5 

Country Schools: 
Adequacy 15 

Arrangement 10 

Actual Score 

Average 

SANITATION 

Perfect Score 30 

Made up oi 

Adequacy of Facilities 5 

Type 5 

Lighting 5 

Air Conditions 5 

Drainage 2 

Drinking Water Facilities 3 

Appearance 5 

Country Schools : 

Adequacy 10 

ition ,0 

Drinking Water Facilities 1n 

Actual Score 

Average 



v. S - 



Did New 



New Old 



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8 


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3 


3 


3 


8 


3 








3 8 


8 


8 


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8 


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8 








3 3 


3 


3 


8 


3 


8 








3 











3 


8 


8 


8 


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3 3 


3 3 


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5 20 
17.5 



12 12 

12 



"25 30 

27.5 225 



Jlj 30 27 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 

020 949 731 1 



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